The Demigod Campione
by Coolheadluke
Summary: What would happen if Liliana met another boy before Godou? And what if, hypothetically, this boy had the hidden capability to become one of the most powerful campione of all time? This is my take on that idea. Mostly from an OC's perspective, slightly AU as well. Enjoy:)
1. Liliana and Ladron

Ch1 Lilliana and Ladron

Lilliana was severely regretting going on a "Girl's Afternoon" with Erica. It had began simply enough, with Erica calling Lilliana up after a recent competition between their mage organizations. Lilliana had agreed, believeing that they would be engaging in knightly activities, such as a dueling, magic competitions, and an honorary meal together after. Instead, Erica had invited Lilliana to an five-star restaurant (and picked up the tab), before dragging her across Milan's shopping district. In of itself, this wouldn't have been so bad, except that Erica was only interested in trying on everything Lilliana considered shameful; tops with low cut necklines, dresses with missing backs, short skirts (without accompanying tights or kneehighs), and swimsuits that revealed a lot of skin.

"S-S-Shameful..." Lilliana stuttered, as Erica came out of the dressing room for what seemed like the hundredth time.

"Come on Lily" Erica said, twirling herself around and smiling. "If you would just try a few outfits on, then you wouldn't have to watch me display them all."

"Eh?" Lilliana blushed, her mind rejecting the image of her wearing anything remotely resembling the shameless attire Erica was modeling.

"Oh well" Erica smiled, enjoying Lilliana struggling with her own emotions. "I'll go make my purchases, then you can treat us to dinner."

The two left the store and entered the bright summer day, each weighed down by several bags of Erica's new clothes. As they walked down the crowded sidewalk, Erica was bumped by a young man of about her age, causing her to stumble. Without breaking stride, he turned, caught the bags Erica had dropped, placed them lightly on the ground, and caught Erica's shoulder to stop her from falling.

"My apologies" he said, his shoulder-length black hair obscuring his face "I should really pay better attention." After he was sure that Erica wouldn't fall, he turned and walked off into the crowd.

"Not a bad fellow" Erica commented with a smile. "He really..." her face and voice froze at the same moment. "That BASTARD!" Erica exclaimed, shaking with anger "He stole my purse!" Lilliana looked down and noticed that, somehow, her purse had also been stolen. Casting a swift spell to transport the bags of clothes to Erica's rooms at the Copper Black Cross, the two sprinted after the man. He seemed to sense their approach, as he too launched into a run, weaving in and out of the shoppers on the sidewalks. "Lily, see if you can get ahead of him with your flight magic." Nodding, Lilliana quickly ducked into an alleyway before launching herself into the sky. Flying high, she gauged her moment carefully, then dropped like a stone, landing lightly in front of the fleeing thief, shocking a not a few pedestrians as well. Without pause, the thief planted a hand on her shoulder and pushed off to the side, using her firm stance to launch himself into a nearby alley. Lilliana used her magic to make a heroic leap, again landing in front of the thief, even as Erica came up from behind. The thief stopped and stood sideways, carefully keeping both girls in his sight.

"Caught between the beauty of the sun and the moon" he mused to no one in particular.

"Give us back our purses, thief!" Erica demanded, her face full of righteous anger.

"The firey passions of the golden sun, they blaze forth in their glory" the man continued, "flashy and desirous of attention, you always need to display your beauty in the spotlight." Lilliana blushed at his honeyed words and tone, and also demanded that he return what he had stolen. "And the contrasting beauty of the moon. Cold, reserved, and pure, yet possessing a hidden charm none can quite define" As he turned his brilliantly blue gaze upon her, Lilliana could feel her cheeks burning.

"Stop messing around! Will you or will you not return our property to us?" Erica angrily demanded, losing all patience.

"Claim them and they will no longer be mine" the thief said, his tone becoming playful. He pulled their purses out from under his long coat, waving them nonchalantly. Erica was incensed at the man's actions, his manner, and his refusal to accept that he had been cornered. Embracing her belief that a frontal charge was often the best strategy, she dashed forward, she swiping one of his arms aside while reaching for the purses. The thief let the purses slip down from his hand onto his arm, and grabbed Erica's wrist. Planting his other hand on her back, he pivoted his body and lowered his center of gravity, using Erica's momentum to throw her towards the startled Lilliana. After releasing her, the thief turned and ran back into the crowd.

Lilliana didn't bother catching Erica, and dashed after the thief. Using magic to increase her speed, she easily kept the man in sight as he weaved between the shoppers and tourists, provoking cries of indignation and surprise. He seemed to be running with no clear plan, taking random turns and cutting across streets. Buildings seemed to fly by on either side of the two as they increased their speed to the extreme limits of the human body and the wind howled in their ears. The thief finally took a sharp turn into an alley. Catching up, Lilliana paused at the narrow entry and looked around. The alley was a dead end, dark, quiet, and utterly deserted. Lilliana focused her will, trying to find the thief through magic, but he seemed to have simply disappeared. Erica caught up a minute later, breathing hard.

"How...how did he...get away?" she panted, catching her breath.

"I don't know." Lilliana responded, her face impassive. "But I know someone who can find him." She turned and leapt into the air, thinking of the prodigal mage back at the Bronze Black Cross.

The thief slowly leaned out of the narrow fire escape he had jumped onto, dropping silently back to the ground. He waited a few mintues to ensure that there would be some distance between him and the two girls, then casually walked away. His feet automatically took him back to his favorite haunt, an alcove nestled between two alleys. It was dark, quiet, and close on all sides, a comfortable combination. By the light of a flashlight he had stolen, he examined his take. One of the purses was somewhat flashy and expensive looking, with the logo of some elite designer brand on the side. The other was far more plain and utilitarian in appearance, probably made by a local leatherworker. Not really caring about outward appearances, the thief opened and shook out the purses. There was the usual assortment of items he had no use for, and he pushed these aside without emotion. Digging deeper into the pile, he found the girls' wallets-which he discarded because they only had credit cards and identification-their cell phones, a rather long receipt for an expensive shopping center, a notebook, and some carved stone tablets. He finally extracted the leather-bound notebook, which had a heart burned into the cover, and pocketed it. Otherwise disgusted with his take, he left the bags where they were and stood up, planning on picking a few pockets to scrape together enough cash for a decent meal.

As he was about to leave, Lilliana and another person dropped in from the sky. As the thief already knew Lilliana's appearance, he focussed on the newcomer. He was a tall fellow, with blond hair, a scraggly beard, and elegant glasses. A staff wrapped in bandages was slung almost carelessly across his back. He stood casually, and seemed to radiate with some unknown force.

"Give back the purses" Lilliana demanded, summoning her sword, Il Maestro, and taking up her stance.

"They are no longer mine" the thief replied, shaken by their sudden appearance "Only uselessness was found within." Lilliana stepped forward and picked up the two bags, which felt like they still held all their contents.

"If you'll attend to his memory, Nick." The other man stepped forward.

"Thy will-words will bear no fruit" the thief said, nervously eyeing the staff Nick was drawing off of his back.

"I highly doubt that" Nick replied with a smile, and focused his will. The staff responded by loosing the bandages he had wrapped around the tip, revealing glowing runes. "I have mastered the art of universal affliction" Nick continued, unsealing more power within the staff "All things are affected by my spells, regardless of their innate resistance to magic."

"A unique will, found in the blessed of Hecate, the Greek mistress of magic..." the thief muttered, carefully backing away. "But thy power is not without limit. One cannot affect what one cannot find." So saying, he rolled backwards, and began sprinting through the labyrinth of back alleys that he called home. Nick stood for a few seconds in utter shock, as no one had discerned the origin of his ability so quickly before. Letting his staff rewrap itself in its sealing bandages, he let his magic fade and looked around.

"Unless you want to chase him...Lilliana?" Nick asked, looking around in confusion. Lilliana was running after the thief with desperation in her eyes. To have her purse stolen was bad enough, but to have her notebook potentially read by a complete stranger was mortifying. Having used a spell to lock on to the thief's location, she was able to follow in his footsteps very easily. Though he did not appear to have any magic of his own, he was incredibly fast. Lilliana leapt around a corner, and fell heavily as the thief clotheslined her. Recovering swiftly, Lilliana threw herself upwards, grabbing the thief's outstretched arm and flipping both of them over, pinning him against the ground.

"Where is it?" she demanded, her voice hoarse and desperate.

"I know not what you seek" the thief replied, violently resisting the painful hold he had been placed in.

"My notebook! What have you done with it?!"

"Your leather-bound bundle of inked words and paper?" he asked, panic creeping into his voice.

"Yes, that!"

"It resides within my jacket. But why does this object affect the beauty of the moon so? If it incites such worry, would it not be better to discard its discord?"

"Just give it to me!" Lilliana demanded, rising, flipping the thief over and roughly searching his pockets.

"The face of the moon shines red" the thief observed, his tone growing calmer and sly, "Is it exertion, embarrassment, shame?" When Lilliana blushed even more, he smiled and added, "What secrets lie inked upon those pages? One wonders..."

Lilliana finally pulled the book out of his pocket. As she did so, his hands deftly slid it out of hers and flipped through the pages, his eyes seeming to glow with an unnatural light. Snapping the book closed, he offered it to Lilliana, who seized it and rapidly stuffed it back into her purse. Looking at her with a puzzled expression, he asked, "Why hide your words away? They are as much you as you are." Lilliana paused, staring at the thief, who seemed to have read the entire contents of her notebook. "Your story wasn't the best, but it's better than most I've seen."

"Did you just change your manner of speech?" Lilliana asked, blushing while still noticing the obvious change.

"You're changing the subject" the thief said seriously, "And you haven't answered my question." Lilliana stared at the thief, who seemed to be a completely different person.

"I hide them because I choose to hide them" Lilliana said lamely.

"And I changed my manner of speech because I chose to as well" the thief returned swiftly. Lilliana sighed, letting the matter drop. "Do you think you could let me up?" the thief asked plaintively, still pinned by Lilliana's knee. Blushing, Lilliana hurriedly got off of him and stood up.

"Where's your family?" she asked, wanting to send the boy home. The thief rolled back to his feet, dusted himself off, and then said "I don't have one." Lilliana simply stood there and looked at the thief. It was astounding that he had managed to survive into his teenage years without being killed or imprisoned.

"Who taught you how to survive?" she asked in genuine curiosity.

"No one" he replied simply. "I taught myself what works and what doesn't." Lilliana didn't know how to proceed, since she had never met someone like this before. More to keep the conversation going than anything else, Lilliana asked for his name. "I've never had one, never needed one." he replied.

"Well, I can't just keep calling you 'thief' now can I?" Lilliana said, somehow uncomfortable with his lack of a name. "How about Ladron?" she suggested, it being the first that popped into her mind.

"You'd name me a thief in spanish?" he asked, amused. Lilliana blushed.

"Sorry, it just came to mind..."

"Ladron..." the boy said, seeming to taste the word on his lips, then suddenly laughed. "It does seem to fit, doesn't it?" Just then, an audible gurgling interrupted their conversation. Lilliana glanced around for a few seconds before noticing that Ladron looked a little sheepish. "I guess I need to go get myself some food..."

Lilliana promptly led Ladron to a series of street food vendors, and cobbled together a halfway decent meal. Ladron was shy at first, quiet and passive, but he soon opened up, and his thorough knowledge of the streets of Milan led to an excellent outing. Eating while they walked, Lilliana and Ladron took turns showing off areas of the city that they liked, as well as laughing at street performers, criticizing graffiti, and occasionally sampling more street food. The sun began to set, and Ladron looked like he wanted to return to the back alleys he called home. Remembering that he had not had a proper meal, Lilliana refused to let him disappear. At her insistance, Ladron accompanied Lilliana to a nearby cafe, where she ordered two roast turkey panini and a salad. "I could manage on my own..." Ladron said, looking around the cafe nervously.

"You would have stolen money, and probably have gone to a far inferior establishment. The first I cannot allow, and thus, I must treat you to a decent dinner." Lilliana declared, taking pride in the code of chivalry.

"Ah well, thanks anyway! Picking pockets is an iffy business, it can take forever to make much. I'm fine eating rats though, they have a nice taste when they're charred. Much better than crow or mouse." Lilliana blanched, listening to Ladron casually rambling about the taste of vermin was slightly nauseating. While he explained the finer points of how to prepare street food, Lilliana shut off her ears and examined Ladron. He was nothing special, with shoulder-length black hair, average height, an overlarge and patched sweater, severely worn jeans and shoes that looked ready to fall apart. His face was rather plain, his only notable features being his brilliant icy blue eyes. The food arrived, and the conversation halted as the two tucked into their panini. It seemed as though the evening might be spent pleasantly in Ladron's company...Until an overly cheery voice rang out.

"So this is where you've been hiding, Lily! I looked everywhere for you!" Erica plopped herself down in a third chair, and motioned for the waitress to come over. "And since when did you have a boyfriend?" Lilliana choked on her salad, and blushed furiously while coughing. Ladron looked at Erica, who clearly didn't recognize him, and said, "And you are?" "One of Lily's friends, surely she's told you about Erica Blandelli?" When Ladron shook his head, Erica turned on Lilliana. "Really, you wouldn't tell either of us that the other existed? That's exceptionally poor manners, Lily!" Lilliana's already crimson face became even more red. "I...I..." Lilliana stammered, completely disarmed by Erica's relentless teasing.

"I see the passions of the beauteous sun extend beyond anger, and into joyful play" Ladron commented, taking pity on Lilliana. Erica's head snapped around, and she stared at Ladron, recognition dawning on her face. He smiled impudently. "I noticed your receipt, and since I have the benefit of an excellent imagination..." he said, deliberately leaving it hanging.

Lilliana managed to keep Ladron's chest from collapsing in on itself long enough for a Karen to arrive with medical supplies. "You didn't have to kick him so hard" Lilliana complained, disappointed by Erica's display of rage.

"He has the basest mind of everyone that I have ever met!" Erica declared, glaring at the wounded Ladron. "He deserved the pain!" Lilliana sighed, knowing that it was impossible to reason with Erica when she was like this. Karen stood up and repacked her medkit.

"He'll live, but we should probably take him back to the mansion, give him the attention of a more skilled healer." Lilliana slung the stabilized Ladron over her shoulders and launched herself into the sky, leaving Karen and Erica alone.

"This has possibilities" Karen commented, looking up at the speck that was Lilliana. Erica managed to calm down a bit, and matched Karen's demonic smile.

"Agreed."


	2. Predator and Prey

Ladron woke up from his drug-induced rest with a headache and minor pains in his chest. The headache was obviously from the drugs, and after feeling his ribs, he knew that they were not yet fully healed. Curious as to how far he had yet to go, he tried to shift himself around. However, he felt a weight on his abdomen. Curious, he forced his somewhat crusted eyes to open and raised his head. He couldn't see much, but he didn't have to. The long silvery ponytail and blue outfit told him that the girl resting her head and arms on him was Lilliana.

Letting his head fall back, Ladron painfully sighed. It was pointless to try to get up while she was sleeping. Resigned to waiting, he closed his eyes and simply rested.

Since Ladron had woken up very early in the morning, a few hours passed before Lilliana got up. With a small yawn, she raised her head and stretched. She rubbed her eyes and looked at Ladron, who had drifted into a state somewhere between being awake and dreaming. Disturbed by the shifting of Lilliana's weight, Ladron pulled his mind together and opened his eyes. Planting a hand on the bed, he slowly shoved himself upright, wincing a little.

"So, how would you rate my chest as a pillow?" he inquired, his upbeat voice not matching his physical condition.

"E-e-eh?" Lilliana floundered, he face becoming red.

"It's a simple question" Ladron continued, his tone still friendly. "How would you rate my chest against, say, a down pillow?" Lilliana continued to blush and frantically tried to put a coherent sentence together. "You fluster easily, you know that?" Ladron commented, smiling. _Now why did I say that?_ he berated himself silently as Lilliana's face got even redder. _I can't afford to make friends. Not here, not anywhere..._

"I-I was worried" Lilliana began somewhat lamely. "Y-you put yourself forward to stop Erica from teasing me, and got injured as a result. As I obey the code of chivalry, I could not leave an injured ally in anyone's care but my own." her voice and conviction became stronger as she spoke, rationalizing her actions somehow made them less embarassing in her mind.

"I see" Ladron replied. "So, what's for breakfast? I've never been in a hospital, but I've heard that the food is awful."

"This isn't a hospital, it is..." Lilliana paused, wondering just how much to reveal to Ladron. After a few seconds, she decided on telling half of the truth. "It's my home." Ladron's eyes seemed to glow a little dully.

"Your home?" he asked, skeptically.

"Yes, my family is rather rich, so we have our own medical equipment for when family members get severly hurt." she replied.

"Rich indeed...so if you're rich, the food should be better than the rumors, right?" Ladron mused hopefully.

"Of course! You rest up, I'll go see what's in the kitchen..." Lilliana declared, moving out of the room. Before the door had closed, Ladron was back asleep.

"Did you have a pleasant night, mistress?" a young, green haired maid was bowing in front of Lilliana. "You looked so comfortable resting on the visitor that I didn't want to move you."

"K-Karen, what are you doing up so early?" Lilliana demanded, a little taken aback.

"Early?" Karen asked, confused. "It is nearly ten."

"Eh?" Lilliana said, checking her cell phone. _I really did oversleep..._ she thought, unconsciously reminscing about how comfortable she had felt sleeping next to Ladron. _Nononono!_ Lilliana chastised herself, shaking her head. "There's nothing between us except random chance!" she declared, her voice unintentionally loud.

"What are you talking about?" Karen asked, seeing Lilliana's thought process on her face.

"N-nothing" Lilliana hurriedly said, and quickly ran off towards the kitchen. When she returned to Ladron half an hour later, she was holding a tray with cereal, a stack of thin pancakes, a small pitcher of milk, several different kinds of jam, and a glass of orange juice. Setting the tray on the bedside table, she shook Ladron gently by the shoulder.

Drifting awake, Ladron straightened up, and the sheets fell down to his waist. He was decently thin, and magically treated bandages were wrapped around his torso.

"Ech..." he groaned, stretching his arms. He looked over at the food tray. "I assume that breakfast has arrived?"

"Yes, though you should eat slowly, your body hasn't fully recovered yet." Lilliana replied.

"Thanks" Ladron said with a smile, tucking into his delicious breakfast.

The rest of the day was spent in pleasant conversation, reminscing about the previous day, Lilliana sharing stories from her past, and Ladron giving random advice on how to live the life of a wandering vagabond. When dinnertime rolled around, Lilliana again went downstairs, and returned with a tray of grilled sausage, sliced and laid on top of cheese ravioli with pesto. This was equally delicious, and Ladron complimented her on her cooking skills. Becoming rather drowsy, Ladron shuffled back down beneath the sheets and almost instantly fell asleep.

The next day, Ladron woke up to find that Lilliana had again used his chest as a pillow. Smiling sadly, he gently pushed her aside. He sighed, he had enjoyed himself over the past few days, and had made a friend despite his best efforts. But now he had to leave, he brought only misfortune to those around him. Touching his ribs to ensure that he had been completely healed, he pulled out his IV and quietly slipped from the bed. He looked around for some clothes, but other than the hospital pants and bandages he was wearing, he couldn't find any. He shrugged, it wouldn't be the first time he had to reassemble his wardrobe from scratch. He then took a few moments to truly examine his room for the first time. It was painted a stark white, with a few wooden cabinets and a door that seemed to be made out of metal. He checked the door to see if it was unlocked, then pressed his ear against it and waited. Hearing nothing, he slipped out of the room. He saw that indeed, this house of Lilliana's was a mansion, with expensive carpets, paintings, and tapestries. Though he did not know it, he was in the mansion HQ of the Bronze Black Cross. Keeping low, he moved quickly and quietly, the motions of an experienced thief. There were many doors on either side of the tile hallway, but he was only interested in finding a staircase or elevator, maybe a window with a drainpipe nearby, something to escape from. He found a corner window, and looked around. There was a ledge he could move along, but no way down from the third floor.

He was about to close the window and curse his luck when he heard footsteps from around the corner. Without hesitation, he swung out from the window, eased it closed, and moved along the ledge. He had never minded heights or daring acrobatics, but to jump from three stories with nothing but concrete to break his fall was a bad idea. Moving a little farther, he found a small window, barely as wide as his shoulders. He peeked inside, saw that it was some storage room or other, broke the glass, and dove inside.

Landing lightly, he looked around. The room looked like the back room of a small clothing store, with boxes labeled with product names and sizes. Looking around at a few that were already opened, he grabbed a pair of jeans, a random teeshirt, and some shoes. He also found a sweatshirt that, strangely, had not only a hood, but a face mask as well. Considering it a bonus, he slipped it on and tucked the mask away. The only trouble was finding a way out. Though the general darkness was not a problem to Ladron, the high stacks of boxes were like a maze. He finally found a door, and tried the handle. Finding that it was unlocked, he slipped out. Sure enough, it had been the back room of a clothing store. This was one of many ways that the Bronze Black Cross funded itself, but there was no way that Ladron could have known this. He kept his movements calm and natural as he moved out from behind the counter and made for the front door, to all appearances an employee that had finished his shift.

"Ladron?" an unknown voice asked in surprise. He kept walking, acting oblivious. "Ladron, why aren't you resting? Your ribs will never heal at this rate!" Ladron felt a hand about to close on his shoulder, and he abandoned caution, sprinting out from the shop, down an ornate staircase, and onto the streets. As he continued to move, he glanced back over his shoulder. He saw a teenaged girl in a maid's uniform, with long green hair and a general air of exhasperation. "Ladron!" she called, running after him. He dove into an alleyway, and rapidly lost himself in the labyrinth of backstreets and alleys that he called home. When he was certain that he had lost his pursuer, he stopped and caught his breath. He would have to leave the city now, the being that followed him would not be swayed from its purpose, and Ladron would not allow anyone to suffer along with him.

_Where next?_ He wondered, mentally listing off names of cities he had already been to. _Perhaps it's time to leave Italy..._ Ladron spent the rest of the day picking pockets and purses, slowly accumulating enough cash to pay for a trip to Greece. Once he had enough, he boarded a second-class train and left Italy behind.

"You know, if you want to escape from magi, you need to do more than just stay out of sight." a voice said in Ladron's ear. He jumped and turned around. Nick was standing in front of him, holding a few sandwiches. "Lilliana is in the next car, why don't we go over and say hello?" Nick suggested, his smile not quite reaching his eyes. Ladron sighed and followed Nick. He led Ladron to the next car and from there, to the compartment he and Lilliana had monopolized.

"Why did you run?" Lilliana half asked, half accused Ladron. "You could have injured yourself even more!" Ladron sat down with a bowed head, refusing to answer. Nick sat down as well.

"You might as well tell us, we have an hour or so more until we arrive." he suggested. Keeping his face down, Ladron kept silent, letting the rythmic sounds of the train reign unchallenged. Though Nick and Lilliana tried many different ways to make him talk, he continued in silence.

"Just answer me, dammit!" Lilliana finally demanded, grabbing Ladron by the shoulders. "We're friends, aren't we? Doesn't that count for something?!"

Ladron lifted his head, looking Lilliana straight in the eyes. "My past is not a pretty thing, but if you must know..." he left it hanging, wondering where to begin. "I didn't have what you might consider a normal childhood... My parents abandoned me at birth, and I was raised by various people who also lived on the streets. Fortunately, none ever tried to take advantage of me." Ladron paused, seeming to gather his thoughts. "When I was about ten, I began to notice odd things around me. I could sense people's motives, I could observe their actions and words and intuitively know everything about them. It wasn't facts or information, it was impressions, images, feelings. No language I had ever learned could express this information to others in an understandable way." Lilliana nodded, remembered his ramblings when he had been cornered in the alleyway. "I could also see creatures and beings that no one else seemed to notice. Humans with incredible power, beasts that served their every whim. They never seemed interested in me, so I never knew if they were real or just inside my head... It took me a little while to get used to it, but I managed. However, it was the awakening of this 'sight' that heralded the end of my normal life. Ever since that day, I have been hunted by..." he paused, seeming to hear something that the others could not.

"Hunted by what?" Lilliana asked, while Nick focussed his magic, attempting to notice what Ladron did. Ladron reached forward and grabbed Lilliana by her shoulder. Ignoring her startled "Eh?!" he dragged her onto the floor of the compartment, falling next to her. Nick, who had divined the nature of the danger, also threw himself down and braced.

A massive blow smashed into the train car, sending it tumbling off of the track. The screaming of passengers could be heard over the sound of tumbling luggage and the car crashing through some foliage. When it finally stopped moving, Ladron shakily stood up, saying, "Where is he?..." he looked into the sky, trying to see something. Nick rose, and pointed.

"Your hunter is over there" he stated. The sky had darkened, and lightning crashed around the devastated train car.

"I see" Ladron replied, his voice unnaturally calm. "Thor used Mjölnir to try to kill me, lucky that the train was stronger than most."

"What?" Lilliana exclaimed, watching a chariot drawn by two rams appear and dear down on them.

"I'll explain later" Ladron promised, grabbing Lilliana's hand. "For now, we run."

The three dashed through the foliage and trees, pursued by the Thor in his hunting chariot. Rather than simply catching up to them with godly speed, Thor seemed content to follow at a distance, and let his prey fall into exhaustion. Nick had long ago began using his staff like a witch's broomstick to transport himself, as his physical stamina was rather weak. Lilliana was not the greatest runner either, but she easily compensated by increasing her speed with magic. On the other hand, Ladron's endurance was such that he wasn't even sweating or breathing shallowly when he stopped in the middle of a clearing. Confused, his companions also stopped.

"We're never going to outrun Thor, the greatest hunter in Norse mythology" Ladron explained. "However, for some reason, he is only interested in me. You can leave, save yourselves..."

"You must be crazy!" Lilliana said, cutting Ladron off. "We're not going to just abandon you!"

"Seriously, what do you take us for?" Nick agreed, smiling.

"You don't understand!" Ladron exclaimed, "You are the only people that have truly treated me as a friend in my entire life. I don't want you to die for my sake!"

Further conversation became impossible, as Thor crashed into the clearing, brandishing is mighty hammer, his eyes alight with the thrill of the hunt. Dismounting his chariot, he stood tall at a height of nearly two and a half meters, with massive shoulders and flowing golden hair. He strode forward, flourishing his hammer, Mjolnir. Nick and Lilliana both drew their weapons and stepped between Ladron and Thor, but were blasted away by sudden gale force winds. Roaring in triumph, Thor raised Mjolnir, infusing it with the lightning of the Tempest. As the hammer crashed down, Ladron fell backwards, trying to evade. The hammer smote the earth where Ladron had just been standing, sending out a shockwave of power that hurled him into a nearby tree. There was a sickening crack as Ladron's spine was broken on impact, and he was unconscious before he hit the ground. Thor raised Mjolnir again, fully intending to end Ladron's life.

"STOP!" Lilliana yelled, raising Il Maestro and putting herself between Thor and Ladron, Nick following suit. "You will not kill him!"

"His life is not worth mourning, for he is destined to become a monster." Thor declared impatiently, eager to end this hunt.

"How can you say that?" Lilliana demanded, "He was a good person! Sure, he was a street urchin, even a thief, but he was still my friend!"

"Maiden, he hast deceived you" Thor said, sounding like he pitied her. "Without exception, the children of my wayward brother, Loki, are destined to become monsters."

Nick and Lilliana were both shocked by this revelation. Nick recovered first, saying, "Did not Loki sire Sleipnir, the trusted mount of Odin? Was he not the father of Narfi, a young god who played no significant role in mythology? Was not Hela made into a monster by Odin, who cast her into Hel out of the fear that she _may have been_ a monster?"

"SILENCE!" Thor commanded, incensed that a mere mortal would dare to speak back to him. "Loki is very nearly defeated. When he is, the Aesir will seal his power away. If this demigod son of his had been allowed to survive, he would have served as a vessel for Loki's rebirth."

Nick glared at Thor, incensed by how the Gods casually involved the human world in their disputes. Drawing his staff and holding it parallel to the ground, he cried, "Mistress of Magic, Lady Hecate, hear my prayer! I am the final arbiter of magic, master of affliction! Unseal my true strength that I may vanquish my foe!" Nick's eyes blazed with power, golden Omegas burned within his irises. All the bandages on his staff unsealed themselves, wrapping around his clenched fist and arm. Bound to his weapon, Nick unleashed his magic as a whirlwind of pure fury. Thor's armor was rent by the vortex, but he dispelled the winds of power by summoning a blast of lightning. Nick closed the distance between him and Thor, and drove the tip of the staff into Thor's abdomen. With a mighty shove, Thor flew backwards. Thor retaliated by unsealing the storm he had summoned, drenching the battlefield in torrential rain, and peppering it with sporadic blasts of lightning. Letting his divine rage infuse the storm, he battered Nick with his hammer, slowly crushing him under the weight of his superior might.

Watching her companion boldly challange a God, Lilliana also unleashed her trump card. "From the blood of the slain, the bow of Jonathan did not turn back! From the fat of the mighty, the sword of Saul did not return unsatisfied! Oh, For I wonder if the heroes have fallen in the midst of the battle. David's Bow, for you are a vessel of the hero, swifter than eagles, stronger than lions! With all speed, dispatch your enemy!" Lilliana had infused her sword, Il Maestro, with the power of David's Bow. Both this and the Blessing of Hecate that Nick carried were weapons with enough power to slay gods. Manifesting four arrows, she shot them directly into Thor's back. Though the blows were dulled by his remaining armor, Thor still growled in pain. Turning on her, he raised his hand, and lightning smote down on Lilliana. Or it would have, if a flock of ravens had not swopped down and thrown Lilliana back several meters. A fourth figure now stood among the combatants, gazing down on the broken body of Ladron. He was tall, with hair as black as midnight, noble features, and icy eyes.

"A pity that events came to this..." the newcomer said, his voice strangely emotionless. In his hand a spear that was made entirely of wood appeared, radiating with dark power. Thor was roaring, again summoning the Tempest to devastate the area. Nick drew his power in, forming a shield on par with divine protection. The figure knelt down, and placed the spear in Ladron's limp hand. As Thor brought Mjolnir crashing down, a flock of concealing ravens descended on the figure and Ladron.

Author's Notes:

Hey readers! I know that this is only the first day of me posting material, (I have about four chapters already finished in my notes) and I hope that this is how one is supposed to insert Author's Notes. Seriously, if you guys have any advice at all I'd appreciate it. Anyway, I hope that you are enjoying the series so far and I truly hope that it will get better :)


	3. Ladron Lokison

**Ch3 Ladron Lokison**

The energy left over from Thor's blast still crackled in the air. A massive crater had been formed, completely obliterating the grove. Nick had collapsed from the effort of blocking the attack, and his staff had resealed itself. Lilliana looked around, trying to see anything else. Thor was clearly visible from the lightning still playing around his hammer. But where was Ladron? The dust in the air was too thick to discern anything.

"The prey is taken. The hunt, over" Thor declared, the dust settling. Neither Ladron nor the figure that had been above him could be seen. Nick was coughing, Thor was recuperating, and Lilliana sat in a grove of desolation, mourning the friend that she had barely known. The injustice of the situation only worsened her feelings of failure. She and Nick, prominent members of the Bronze Black Cross, had failed to protect the innocent. The determination that had flared in her heart after challenging Thor drained away, leaving behind only despair.

"Pull...yourself...pull yourself together..." Nick groaned, struggling to his hands and knees. "We could not save him, but we can honor his passing." Thor watched the two slowly rise, reaching for their weapons.

"Thy struggle is pointless" he stated. "It will only end in death and dishonor." Nick and Lilliana were leaning on each other's shoulders, but though their bodies were tired, their will blazed anew with determination. Thor sighed, raising his hammer. Several storm clouds began roiling overhead, working up more than enough power to ensure the destruction of the two foolish mortals in front of him.

"Mistress of Magic..." Nick began, again invoking the Blessing of Hecate, trying to form another shield. Thor declared, "Come forth, rain destruction upon my foes!" As lightning crashed through the skies, bathing what was left of the battlefield in a maelstrom of Thor's power, a third flock of ravens could be seen winging their way between the bolts.

In a tree about a hundred meters away from the raging Thor, a figure was kneeling on a branch. Next to him, a man with a staff over his back was carelessly slung over the branch, unconscious. In the figure's arms a silver-haired girl lay, slowly recovering from the shock of almost dying. As the ravens whirled around him and slowly disappeared, the figure slowly took more definite form, a teenager in jeans and a sweatshirt, with black hair and piercing blue eyes. The two locked gazes.

"Ladron?" Lilliana whispered, staring.

Ladron smiled. "If this was a scene from your novel" he said, "This would be the time for the male lead to say something unbearably romantic. Any ideas?" Lilliana was too tired to blush.

"How?" she asked, still in shock.

"Loki was being hunted because he betrayed Asgard" Ladron began, "And in Norse mythology, he was the only god to transcend death. When he appeared during the fight, he knew that he would not have enough power to defeat Thor. Instead, he chose to pass on his power to me."

"He did what?" Lilliana asked, incredulous.

"I am the fifth child of Loki, its why I've been able to see people's secrets, see divine beasts and gods" Ladron explained. "He used me to kill himself, making me his heir. Thus, I inherited his powers." Lilliana took only a minute to digest this information. Thor had called him a demigod, the bastard child of a human and a god. Seeing as Ladron's inheriting of Loki's powers had taken only a few seconds, instead of the hours it took for a campione to be born, the situation was easily believable.

The two continued to sit there for a few minutes, watching Thor recover and leave the desolated battlefield behind. Without warning, Lilliana's spirit vision granted her a view of the future. She saw a destroyer rising from the ashes of countless gods, a monster without compare, a demon that would consume all before him. She watched as his power laid waste to entire armies, countries, continents. A herald of the apocalypse. Shuddering back from this vision, Lilliana found herself snuggling up to Ladron, who held her with strong but gentle arms. She took comfort in this embrace, and for once was able to truly relax. For some reason, she wanted Ladron to be successful, to stand proudly among the highest ranks of magical society. _I could help him get there..._ she mused, letting her mind slip into daydreams of training with Ladron as her apprentice. The setting sun ringed the silhouetted trees in a firery halo, as birds slowly flew off into the distance. _I should remember this..._ Lilliana absently thought, her train of thought shifting to scenes for her novels.

The moment was broken by Nick returning to consciousness. "Euagh..." he groaned, heaving himself into a more comfortable position on the branch. Seeing Ladron holding Lilliana, he asked, "Ok, what did I miss?" For one flaming instant, Lilliana wanted to kill her old friend.

Several days had passed since the incident on the train, and Ladron was legally in limbo. Though he was more than willing to simply join the Bronze Black Cross and call it a day, other magical organizations wanted to claim his loyalty or curry favor with him. The Copper Black Cross in particular seemed to desire his affiliation.

"Honestly!" Ladron complained as he walked Milan's streets, "Why can't everyone just take my decision and leave it at that?"

"Because you are one of the most important people in existence right now" Karen, Lilliana's maid, explained. "You inherited all of the authorities of Loki, so your strength rivals that of even the most powerful of campione."

"You guys keep saying 'campione,' but what exactly are they?" Ladron inquired.

"They are humans who have defeated Gods and usurped their authority. They are either extreme geniuses or complete fools" Karen replied. This less than normal discussion was being conducted as Karen and Ladron went grocery shopping. Karen had protested that she was more than capable of doing it herself, but Ladron had tagged along anyway, just to escape from the bureaucratic bickering over his fate. Karen more or less expected her companion to be useless, but he turned out to be just the opposite. He seemed to be incredibly shrewd, able to discern the best value-to-price option out of any number of products, and unswayed by all marketing attempts. Karen was impressed, and asked. "Have you always had such an interest in food?"

"Not really" he responded, comparing prices on seven different brands of soup. "When you grow up on the streets, you eat to survive, not for taste. These two" he said, pointing out two of the brands, "Have the best prices for their volume. What flavors shall we get?"

The beginnings of an idea were forming in Karen's mind. "Well," Karen said, looking at the two brands, "They both offer a standard array of flavors, but I happen to know that Lilliana prefers these" pointing out a few cans.

"Well, you know her best" Ladron said, defering to her opinion. Karen tried a slightly different approach.

"Do you like cooking?" she asked.

"I can cook over an open fire, and all things vermin are my specialties. Not exactly food worthy of a dinner table" Ladron replied, a little puzzled. "Where are these questions coming from? Surely someone told you about my life on the streets?"

"Nope" Karen said, "There has been no time since you came back, and when you were first in the mansion, you were out cold. Lilliana was no help then either, since she refused to leave your side."

"Did she now? I'll have to thank her for that" Ladron said. Though outwardly expressionless, Karen was grinning on the inside. Lilliana would be flustered by his innocent and honest comments, and Karen already knew that Lilliana's daydreams had begun to include Ladron (she had a nasty habit of reading Lilliana's journals).

When they had fininshed getting the groceries, Karen used magic to transport them back to Lilliana's rooms at the mansion. Ladron whistled. "Do you often use magic for such simple tasks?" he asked.

"Only when it's convenient" Karen replied. The two began a leisurely walk back to the mansion, idly chatting about magic. As they turned one of the final corners, they found themselves facing a nearly empty street. Only one person stood there, tall and proud, with golden hair and a scarlet dress.

"Erica, what a surprise!" Ladron greeted, waving his hand. Erica smiled in reply, and fell into step beside the two others.

"So, what brings you two out together?" Erica asked offhandedly, tossing her hair to one side.

"Gathering ingredients for tonight's meal" Karen said. While outwardly respectful, Karen was slightly frustrated. One of the reasons she didn't want Ladron tagging along was because she had planned on selling Lilliana's latest secrets to Erica.

"Ah, I see" Erica stated, then addressed Ladron, "I wasn't aware that a street urchin like you had such an interest in food."

"I'm not" he replied casually, "I just couldn't stand the negotiations anymore."

The three walked in silence for a time, each with their own thoughts. Karen was busy thinking of more ways to mess with Lilliana's life, Ladron was simply enjoying the silence, and Erica was thinking about Ladron. It wasn't because she fancied him, he was far too common in his manners and tastes to be worthy of her attention. It was because, though the negotiators would decide how Ladron would be taught and trained, he would make the decision on his fate after his instruction was over. This being the case, it was in the Copper Black Cross' best interests to have one of their members become friendly with Ladron. Possessing both great beauty and an extrodinary mind, Erica had immediately been volunteered by her uncle, Paolo Blandelli, the Diavolo Rosso.

"I hope your ribs are mending well?" Erica finally asked, hoping to strike up a conversation.

"Indeed. The healers at the Bronze Black Cross seem to know what they're doing. Every rib broken, and completely healed within two days..." Ladron replied, still somewhat awed by magic and its far reaching effects.

"That's good to hear" Erica said, turning her mind towards magic. "Would you like to learn more about magic? I happen to be rather skilled in some areas."

"I'm interested, do you know a quiet place where we can go? I doubt the citizens will take a sudden display very well." Ladron asked, decidedly intrigued.

A few minutes later, Erica and Ladron were in a quiet, abandoned warehouse, Karen having left to continue her duties to Lilliana. Sitting in a corner, Ladron watched as Erica summoned Cuore de Lione and demosntrated her techniques. She transformed the blade from a slander saber into a monstrous broadsword, into a large metallic lion, into shards of metal that struck whatever Erica commanded them to. Ladron was rather impressed at Erica's mastery of her favorite weapon. After showing off, Erica dismissed her blade and turned back to face Ladron.

"So, shall I treat you to lunch, since it's well past noon?" she asked, tilting her head to the side, her voice full of charm. "I could tell you so much more about magic, if you like." Ladron's eyes seemed to be almost glowing in the half light of the warehouse. Coupled with his suddenly unreadable face, Erica felt as if something wasn't quite right.

"That might be fun" Ladron replied, his voice neutral. "But why are you interested in my friendship so suddenly? I thought you viewed me as having a base mind and decided to kick my chest in for it?" Erica grimaced internally, that particular event would make it difficult to gain his trust.

"I wanted to apologize for that, I do occasionally have great flashes of temper..." she said, bowing her head and artfully feigning regret. The light behind Ladron's eyes faded as he stood up, sighing.

"Your words ring of falsehood." he declared, looking Erica in the eye. "You seek my friendship either for your own gain, or for the gain of your organization. Did Signore Blandelli seriously think that I would be swayed by a pretty face and a demonstration of power?" Ladron's tone had become deadly serious, and his eyes were as thin as slits. "I will not be bought, not by the Bronze Black Cross, and certainly not by you" he stated, turning and walking out of the warehouse. Ladron glanced at the sky, and saw that it was nearly the middle of the evening. Knowing he was expected back, he turned his feet towards the mansion, where the negotiations were being held.

-Author's Note: Hey guys! I was forced to take a short break from writing/uploading material because of some medical problems, but that's no big deal. Anyway, I've gotten mixed reviews but I appreciate all viewpoints. To NIX'S WARDEN and kyunaru, thanks for the encouragement! And to DragonXDelinquent, though Ladron is currently a demigod, he will eventually become a campione. I just have to decide which god he kills first :) And to the guy who likes Ladron's speech mannerisms, I fully intend to insert more of them as he begins to meet new people and gods. Happy Holidays guys!


	4. Authority and Might

**Ch4 Authority and Might**

Though the Bronze Black Cross could make a better claim based on finding Ladron first and his friendship with Lilliana, the Copper Black Cross held greater resources and power. Thus, the two organizations were on roughly equal footing in the negotiations. In the end, the final proposal was that the two organizations would take joint responsibility for Ladron's training, with no strings attached for anyone involved. Appreciating the simplicity of the plan, Ladron readily assented, and all necessary preparations were begun.

Nick Grimm was the Bronze Black Cross' foremost expert on magic and divine authorities. As such, he was assigned to be Ladron's tutor in those areas. Conversely, Lauren Lyall was the Copper Black Cross' martial prodigy, and was also Ladron's tutor. When he showed up for his first round of lessons, the two masters were in the middle of a casually brutal life or death brawl. Fighting with wild abandon, Lauren displayed astounding agility and strength while wielding a massive broadsword and wearing a full suit of heavy armor. Calm and collected, Nick countered the animalistic Lauren with a dazzling display of a combined magical offense and defense. Ladron could only stare in wonder as the two fought, displaying the true depths of skills. The fight ended suddenly, with Lauren's broadsword lightly tapping Nick on the neck.

"Six thousand, seven hundred seventy one to six thousand seven hundred seventy!" she declared triumphantly.

"Your speed has grown" Nick complimented, "I'll need to keep that in mind for our next duel."

"As has your ferocity, the brutality of your counter attacks has increased" Lauren returned pleasantly.

"Six thousand..." Ladron whispered, in shock.

"Ah" Nick said, noticing Ladron first, "Our student has arrived."

"Indeed" Lauren added, then asked, "So, how do you like your new home?"

Ladron took a few seconds to answer. The arena that the two had been fighting in was part of a large underground bunker system left over from the Second World War. Unknown to most of the world, magic and occult power had been rather central to the conflict, and these bunkers had been made to withstand apocalyptic events. They were grey, illuminated with harsh white lighting. The corridors were often busy with mages and analysts moving to and from offices and meetings, holding channels of communication open and keeping tabs on any potential threats. The arena itself was the largest single area, and had been made especially resilient to all forms of attack. Through the use of magic, the arena could be made to simulate the appearance of any location on earth. All in all, it was a rather impressive and intimidating setup.

"It's... not very normal" Ladron finally said, unsure of how much he would like it here.

"I know what you mean" Lauren replied, ramming her sword into the ground and tucking her helmet under her arm. Her skin wwas naturally tanned, and she kept her brown hair in a series of braids, wound about her head as a sort of natural padding for her helmet. "I felt the same way when I first came here. Doesn't seem like a place like this should exist in a civilized world, right?" Ladron nodded.

"Anyway" Nick smoothly cut in, swinging his staff onto his back. "I believe that combat training is first off today, so I'll be off in the cafeteria if you need me." So saying, he bowed himself out the door. As soon as he had gone, Lauren laughed.

"He's so serious all the time! Anyway, where are my manners?" she said, smiling broadly and extending a gauntleted hand in greeting. "Lauren Lyall, grandmaster of arms and armor. If it stabs, slashes, crushes, eviscerates, pulverizes, or protects from all forms of physical attack, I know all about it."

"I see..." Ladron replied, not quite sure if she was boasting or not. After shaking her hand, he decided she wasn't, her grip was far too strong. Lauren released his hand and donned her helmet, wrenching her sword out of the ground at the same time.

"Well, let's get to it!" she exclaimed, flourishing her massive blade and taking up a stance.

"W-W-Wait, what?!" Ladron stammered, barely managing to react before Lauren descended on him.

A few hours later, Ladron staggered into the cafeteria, blood dripping from his forehead and left arm. He was covered in scrapes and bruises. He sat down next to Nick, who was enjoying a massive bowl of spaghetti and alfredo. Nick looked him up and down a few times before speaking.

"What happened?" he asked casually, taking another bite of spaghetti.

"Lauren happened..." Ladron groaned, taking a few napkins and wiping his face. "She doesn't seem to undestand the concept of holding back..."

"Ah, that. Yes, I probably should have warned you, but Lauren's belief is that the only worthwhile training is live-fire exercises" Nick mused, hiding a smile by taking an enormous swig of water. Ladron glared at him. Nick shrugged and kept eating. "No one said that this would be easy, you know?" Ladron ground his teeth, but stayed silent. "Well then" Nick said, finishing his meal. "I guess it's time for your magical/mental instruction."

Leaving the cafeteria, Nick led Ladron to the library, a long, high-ceilinged room filled with labyrinthine book shelves. There were tables scattered seemingly at random, with scholars and magi busy studying various tomes and scrolls. Confidently striding through the maze of shelves and tables, Nick led the two of them to a large central table, heaping with books.

"Well, here we are!" Nick said, happily sitting down and picking up a book at random.

"What are we doing, exactly?" Ladron asked, apprehensively eyeing the pile of books.

"This is a large collection of Norse mythology, written by various authors in different time periods" Nick explained. "In order to use your authorities in the most efficient manner, you'll need to know all about Loki's role in the various myths surrounding the Aesir." Ladron grinned, unraveling mysteries and knowledge was always a fun pastime.

Of the two tutors teachings, it was difficult to tell which was worse; being beaten into a pulp by Lauren or having his mind crammed with the details Loki's exploits. The former was painful in the extreme, the latter was a profound letdown. His father waws just about the biggest jerk Ladron had ever heard of. Ladron sighed, rewrapping the bandages he now wore more or less constantly on his arms and torso. The magical healing that they provided was more efficient than seeing a doctor after each lesson. He was sitting on his small cot in the barracks, looking over yet another folder of information on Loki, this time on his role in the death of Baldr. Though an interesting tale in of itself, Ladron was sick of mythology. It had been nearly two months since he had first arrived at the underground bunker complex, and his skills had barely increased. He was still unable to resist Lauren's vicious assaults, still unable to activate any of Loki's supposed authorities at will. Just about the only thing that had increased was his tolerance to pain. Brooding on his failure, Ladron threw the folder aside and stalked down the hall towards the arena. Arriving, he met with the customary blade to the chest that had become Lauren's regular greeting. Knocked flying, Ladron rolled to a stop before scampering sideways, avoiding her relentless follow-up.

"What's wrong? Can't even stay on your feet?" Lauren admonished, twirling her enormous sword with absurd ease. Ladron hissed, forcing himself to keep moving. To stop would be to face an unstoppable world of pain. Lauren pursued him relentlessly, her attacks were accompaned by an unending string of insults and commentary on Ladron's sloppy style. Ladron could feel the usual anger boiling up inside himself, setting his mind afire with a desire for revenge, some small amount of pain he could return to Lauren. It was pointless. Even if he had the ability to counterattack, how could he harm her through all that armor?

"EARGH!" Ladron screamed, his momentary contemplation earning him a deep vertical cut parallel to his spine. He fell to his knees, breathing heavily. He could feel his blood spilling onto his back, soaking into his bandages, giving him a scarlet vest. Lauren planted her foot on Ladron's shoulders, forcing him onto his face. By this point, Ladron's anger had grown into a violent rage, but he was powerless to resist.

"You still can't beat me?" Lauren bragged, tossing her head back in a short laugh. "You'll never become strong at this rate." Ladron ground his teeth, all the pain of the past months flowing though his veins. He felt his anger morphing, solidifying, becoming hatred. Hatred for his powerlessness, hatred for his uncaring tutors, hatred for the magical world at large.

_I have power, why not escape this world? Become more than they want me to be..._ Even as Ladron's thoughts took this somewhat illogical turn, he felt a mysterious power welling up within him, a blazing energy that seemed to both feed off of his hate and magnify it. Without questioning it, he embraced this power, and let his hatred flow. In a whirlwind of rage, he shook off Lauren's foot and stood tall, a wooden spear materializing in his hand. The air around him filled with a dark aura, his eyes were as twin shards of ice. Lauren started back in surprise, staggered at the amount of magical energy that was flowing around Ladron.

"YEEEEEEARRRRGGGGHHHH!" Laddron roared insanely, venting his fury as he charged recklessly, the wooden spear seeming to dance in the air, stabbing, sweeping, striking, driving Lauren back. For the first time, Lauren was on the defensive, unable to resist Ladron's mad counterattack. At first, she was still able to evade and block, but slowly his strikes began to connect. Wherever the spear fell, her armor was rent and torn by Ladron's fury. Spinning the spear like a staff, Ladron rapidly struck the broadsword from Lauren's hands, her helmet from her head, and with a strike to the stomach, drove her into the wall. Spinning, Ladron used the force of his rotating body to drive the point of the spear around behind him, through Lauren's thick armor, and into her side.

"Ach..." Lauren spat, blood coming from her mouth. Reversing his spin, Ladron ripped the spear free and flipped it end for end. As he again faced Lauren, he drove the spear forward, intending to pierce her heart. Before the point could connect, however, Ladron was hurled sideways by a blast of energy. Looking around, Ladron saw Nick rapidly approaching, summoning a maelstrom of power. _You never helped either! _Ladron raged. Rising into a crouch, Ladron hurled the spear with deadly aim. Lodging in Nick's shoulder, the force of the throw sent Nick flying backwards. Leaping forward, Ladron landed on top of Nick and wrenched the spear free.

"Freeze!" A voice rang out, its commanding tone undermined by its fear. Ladron turned to face the speaker, the captain of a security team of magi. Smirking, Ladron adjusted his grip on the spear and charged.

When Lilliana returned from being briefed on the latest events from Sardinia, she found the Mansion in an uproar. Stopping a passing knight, she demanded to know what was going on.

"The bunker system is under attack! Most communication has been lost, but we know that there are a few pockets of survivors."

"How many enemies?"

"Just one, apparently. He seems to be radiating the aura of a god, or more likely someone under the influence of divine possession." Pulling his arm free, the knight ran off to join his squad. Summoning her sword, Il Maestro, Lilliana sprinted off to join them. Leaping down the Mansion's ladder access to the bunkers, Lilliana paused for a second to sharpen her focus. She separated the auras of ordinary humans, holy knights, and magi, searching for the most powerful presence. Having isolated it from the rest of the confusion, Lilliana opened her eyes and began to run, hoping to intercept the being before it caused too much destruction.

Turning several corners, Lilliana was brought up short. The divine presence she felt was right in front of her. Staring, her palms began to sweat as she saw Ladron casually brutalize a squad of highly trained magi. Judging from the weakened and fading auras farther behind him, they weren't the first. With sick fascination, Lilliana was unable to act as her comrades fell in front of her eyes. Leaving the battered magi on the ground, Ladron flourished the spear and stepped forwards, locking eyes with Lilliana. She swallowed, the expression of overwhelming anger was completely foreign to the Ladron that she knew. Her sword hand was shaking, even as she raised Il Maestro to defend herself.

Ladron moved first. Exhibiting unnatural speed, he closed the gap between the two of them in less than a second. Unable to react in time, Lilliana felt the butt of the spear ram into her sternum, and was hurled back about ten meters. Gasping, she forced herself to roll over, avoiding a followup strike that splintered the concrete floor. Rising to one knee, Lilliana raised Il Maestro and braced, blocking an overhead strike from Ladron's spear.

_Such force!_ Lilliana was shocked at the sheer power behind Ladron's strike. As the two strove against each other, Lilliana knew that if the fight remained a contest of strength, Ladron's unnatural condition would easily win. _So we level the odds... _she thought, running her free hand down the length of her blade. Responding to her command, Il Maestro revealed its true form, a long elegantly constructed naginata. Diving to the side, Lilliana swung her weapon in a circle, causing a haunting melody to play. Ladron shook his head, as if trying to rid his mind of the song. _No one can resist Il Maestro's melody, it'll at least slow him down..._ With the odds leveled, Lilliana and Ladron faced off with an impressive series of moves, neither able to gain an advantage. Finally, Lilliana managed to strike Ladron in the gut with the shaft of her naginata.

"Oof..." he exclaimed, backing off and clutching his stomach. Swinging Il Maestro, Lilliana pressed her advantage, backing Ladron into a corner. The haunting melody reached a resounding crescendo as the blade crashed down. The cursed Spear of Mistletoe fell from Ladron's hands and dissipated. Lilliana held the blade to Ladron's throat.

"Do you yield?" she asked, breathing heavily. Ladron remained on his knees, unresponsive. "Ladron!" Lilliana yelled, demanding his attention. As Ladron's head rolled back, his eyes glassy, Lilliana could feel the divine aura emanating from him fluctuate wildly. As the song of Il Maestro died down, the divine aura restored itself, and Ladron rapidly struck the naginata away, throwing himself forward in a full body tackle. Taken by surprise, Lilliana fell heavily, her blade spinning from her grasp. Fortunately, the song played whenever the blade moved, and the ensuing notes were enough to unsettle Ladron's mind. Acting quickly, Lilliana reversed their positions, and after firmly pinning Ladron to the ground beneath her knees, proceeded to punch him rapidly in the face.

"Wake UP!" She yelled, trying to force Ladron to listen to reason. "WAKE UP! This isn't you!" Her words floated down into Ladron's mind, echoing in its silence.

Ladron stirred, but he was not lying on the conrete floor of the bunker. He seemed to be in an infinite space. The more he looked, the more there was to see. All around him, arid and barren hills and plains took shape, cold and silent beneath a grey sky. _Where am I? _Ladron wondered, rising to his feet.

"Welcome" a cold, arrogant voice said in greeting. Spinning, Ladron faced the sudden newcomer. To his surprise, it was like looking into a mirror. The figure looked exactly like himself. "Surprised?" his mirror-self asked, grinning.

"Who are you?" Ladron demanded, feeling as though his counterpart was somehow unnatural.

"I am you. Or rather, a part of you." The mirror self replied, still smiling arrogantly. "Originally, I was part of Loki's soul. I provided his powers, gave him strength. As for your original question, this is your inner world."

"My...what?" Ladron asked, genuinely confused.

"Your inner world" the mirror-self explained, "It is a reflection of your existence. It contains your supply of spiritual energy, as well as manifestations of your humanity and your souls."

"Souls, as in, many of them?"

"Yes, your soul, represented by this landscape; your humanity, represented rather well by you; and all the other souls that you have collected, which currently is just me."

"So, why am I here?"

"Because I summoned you here." the mirror-self seemed almost smug. "Your connsciousness was getting in my way." To Ladron's confused expression, he elaborated. "Just before you came here, you felt extreme hate, no? That allowed me to unseal my powers. However, you would not have known what to do with them or have been able to use them to their potential, so I took over."

"Ok, thanks. But, I'd kind of like my body back now." Ladron said, not quite sure on how to treat this existence that apparently lived inside him.

"I refuse" the existence said, grinning evily. "I _am_ the manifestation of a trickster god, after all. I'm rather enjoying the use of your body."

"Judging from the power you displayed back at the grove, people will die from your playing around" Ladron accused, steeling himself.

"So what?" the existence said, barking out a laugh. "They're just humans. And if you want your body back..." the figure accelerated forwards, hurling Ladron back several meters. "You'll have to fight me for it." Ladron knew that whatever powers this existence in front of him possessed far outclassed his own. Still, this was his body. _His_ world. Ladron moved swiftly, as he had seen Lauren do, extending his hand like the tip of a sword. The existence moved to the side and used Ladron's momentum to throw him. Landing hard, Ladron rolled to his feet and turned to face his opponent again. Again moving suddenly, Ladron came in low, aiming for his opponent's gut. Surprisingly, his blow connected. Equally surprising was that hitting his opponent was like punching a brick wall.

"Ach..." Ladron growled, muttering obscenities under his breath.

"Pitiful, I thought that you'd have more power than that..." the existence sneered, raising his hand. In it appeared the same cursed spear that Ladron had seen once before. His eyes widened in surprise. "It seems that you were able to remember my weapon, good. Then you know that I will end you here and now. Your body will be mine, and Loki will again walk this earth!" So saying, he plunged the spear towards Ladron's heart. Time seemed to slow its unending march. Ladron could clearly see every centimeter that both the spear and his opponent moved. _I am going to die._ Oddly, the thought did not depress him, he had accepted death as a possibility ever since he had been able to understand how dangerous life on the streets was.

"Wake up..." a third voice seemed to echo through the wasteland around him, a girls voice, filled with desperation.

"Lilliana?" Ladron muttered, wondering why he could hear her.

"Wake up, this isn't you..." her voice sounded like she was crying. For some reason, Ladron felt angry at that. He looked back to his opponent, whose spear was mere centimeters awat from his chest now. This unruly existence had taken control of his body, and had made Lilliana cry. Though he could not understand why, this situation royally pissed Ladron off. In the instant of time left to him, Ladron decided against dying, and stood up. He stood up, violently shoving the spear aside, rejecting the notion of being commanded by something other than his own mind. His mind boiling, he lashed out at the fragment of Loki's soul. With his fist imbued with the strength of his anger, Ladron managed to crack the existence's iron defense. Staggerinng back in surprise, Loki's soul again raised the spear, but Ladron was no longer intimidated. He flew forward, delivering a relentless barrage of punches. With each blow, Ladron's anger acted as a catalyst, infusing his strikes with enough power to shatter the existence in front of him. Finally, Loki's soul lay battered and broken on the ground in front of a tired but raging Ladron.

"W-W-Wait!" Loki's soul pleaded, dispelling the spear. "I-I-I'll give you your body back, I'll lend you my power! I-I-I..." his voice trailed off in fear. Ladron grabbed him by the throat, raising his fist to deliver a fatal blow to the dangerously splintered head.

"What if I just decide to punch you into oblivion?" Ladron asked, striving to master his anger.

"My essence will scatter across your inner world, and reconstitute itself after a long time. I won't be able to help you in that state!" Loki's soul pleaded.

"Assuming that I let you live, will you swear on pain of, well, _pain_, that you will serve me?" Ladron demanded, his voice cold and hard.

"Yes, yes! Anything!" the soul promised, desperate. Ladron dropped him.

"You'd better not be lying" he threatened. As the figure nodded and massaged his throat, the inner world seemed to grow dim and hazy, dissipating like smoke in the wind.

Ladron opened his eyes, his real ones this time. He could feel the cold concrete floor of the bunker beneath him. As he looked up, he could feel Lilliana's weight pressing down on him. Her face looked distraught, her eyes were bloodshot from crying. She held Ladron's shoulder against the floor with one hand, while the other was raised, as if about to strike him.

"Please don't" Ladron asked plaintively, lifting a hand to feel his bloody nose. Lilliana sighed in relief, lowering her fist. Getting off his chest, she offered him a hand up. Back on his feet, Ladron rolled his head back and pinched his nose. "You're really strong, you know that?" he said, his voice nasally and casual. Lilliana blushed a little, the touch of red on her cheeks accentuating the beauty of her pale skin and hair. "So, why were you punching me instead of using Il Maestro?" Ladron asked.

"Both of us got disarmed, I had a momentary opening, and I used it to pin you. In order to keep you down, some measure of physical violence was necessary" Lilliana replied, rubbing her knuckles absentmindedly. Ladron nodded, also listening to an inner voice.

_You can call on Loki's heritage to invoke the healing powers of the ice trolls._ Loki's soul informed him deferentially. Thanking the fragment of soul within him, Ladron focussed his mind on his nose, and finally used one of Loki's authorities. The bleeding stopped immediately, and Ladron looked around sadly at the casualties that he had caused.

"Did I...?" he asked, feeling nauseous.

"No one died, as far as I can tell" Lilliana said, retreiving Il Maestro from the corner. "But you probably put half of security in the hospital. The only consolation I can offer is that it happened here, where everyone was aware of the risk."

"Everyone except me" Ladron said, simultaneously feeling like he held an angry caged monster within him, and determination to master the beast. More knights came around the corner, wearing full battle armor and led by Paolo Blandelli

"Ladron, thank heaven you're safe. This is the last known location of the enemy. Did you see where they went?" Paolo's voice was rushed, eager to restore control. Ladron lowered his gaze.

"It was me" he said, ashamed. "I accidentally activated Loki's Cursed Spear of Mistletoe in a moment of rage." Ladron gestured at his surroundings. "This...is the result..." Paolo was taken aback, but rapidly recovered his calm.

"Well, I guess it was only to be expected, the first time anyone uses an authority, we can consider ourselves lucky if casualties are kept to a minimum." Lowering his voice, he asked, "I assume you are back in full possession of yourself?" Ladron nodded, still processing the damage he had done. Taking a few steps back, Paolo consulted with a top member of the Bronze Black Cross, which had just arrived. After a few minutes, he stepped forward again. "Lilliana" he began. "I can only assume that it was you that subdued Ladron?" After she had nodded, he spoke again. "In that case, seeing as you are the one person who can be proven to subdue him, it is the joint decision of our two organizations to place him under your tutilage. Make sure he doesn't lose his mind again." So saying, he turned and walked away.

-Author's Note:  
Alrighty, I've finally gotten to the end of the material that I had prepared before I started posting on , so I'll probably be a little slower in getting stuff out. That being said, I'll also be taking more time to proofread and edit. These first few chapters were really me getting most of what I wanted to set up down in writing. Seeing as I probably won't get anything else up until after the new year, Happy Holidays :)


	5. Nightmares

**Ch5 Nightmares**

Ladron was now officially Lilliana's squire. In addition to learning the arts of war and magic, he was now technically responsible for serving Lilliana in whatever manner she deemed necessary. Though Lilliana already had Karen, her maid, to deal with such tasks, Ladron was still obligated to shift his quarters to a location closer to Lilliana's. If things had been as simple as a room change, Ladron wouldn't have minded.

"Well..." Karen mused, looking at the hallway. "There's a broom closet, if you want to sleep in that?" Ladron sighed. Fate being what it was, there were no other bedrooms next to Lilliana's. This left him two options. He could sleep in the broom closet, which looked uncomfortable and cramped even by his low standards. Or, he could take the couch in Lilliana's room. Though he desperately wanted to avoid an awkward situation, Ladron knew that the broom closet would not work, even as a temporary solution.

"I guess there's no way around this..." Ladron said, defeated. Karen giggled, enjoying Ladron's predicament.

"Shall I get some spare sheets for your couch?" she asked, still smiling. Ladron looked the couch up and down several times, finally letting himself fall face first onto it. Almost as quickly as he fell, he sprang up again. "Not comfortable enough?" Karen asked, about to suggest that Ladron could share Lilliana's spacious king-sized bed.

"Too comfortable" Ladron replied. "I'll just take a pillow and the floor." So saying, he grabbed one of the pillows and made himself at home in a quiet corner of the room. Karen was surprised, until she remembered that Ladron had grown up on the streets, and was accustomed to sleeping on the ground. Lilliana entered, carrying a few bags of extra food over to her room's kitchenette.

"So, what rooms did we get for Ladron?" she asked, busying herself with putting the food away. Ladron and Karen looked at each other.

"Since the only available nearby room was a broom closet," Ladron began, trying to make it sound reasonable, "it seemed like the only option was for me to sleep in your room." Feeling as though it would be awkward if he stopped, Ladron hurriedly added, "Of course, I can sleep in the broom closet if you have objections..." Though neither Ladron nor Karen could see Lilliana's face, it was obvious that she was embarassed.

"Don't worry about it" Karen said, trying to break the tension. "Knights and their squires have shared sleeping quarters since time immemorial." Lilliana blushed even harder, though she still kept her face hidden. Secretly, she didn't really mind that Ladron had to share her room. She liked him, his serious face, the mystery of his unknown talents.

_Perhaps I could be the one to bring these talents forward..._ she mused, finally putting away the box of cereal that she had been holding for the past minute. _And I can keep a closer eye on him..._ She briefly shuddered, remembering Ladron's episode of divine possession. Having concluded that it was for the best, Lilliana's blush calmed down. The rest of the day passed uneventfully, and evening finally came. Ladron yawned and lay down in his corner, falling asleep almost instantly. Lilliana curled up under the covers of her bed and pulled her sleeping mask on. Within a few minutes she too was fast asleep.

When Lilliana woke up, the sun was already shining. Pulling off her mask and rubbing her eyes, she yawned and stretched. Today was the day she would take up the responsibility of tutoring Ladron. As that thought crossed her mind, she glanced at the corner where he had slept. It was empty. _Where could he have gone?_ Lilliana wondered, getting dressed. As she finished, Karen walked into the room pushing a breakfast cart.

"Good morning, Mistress" she said, carefully laying the table. Lilliana acknowledged her with a nod andd began eating. "Oh, and if you're wondering where Ladron is, he was summoned to the hospital to see Nick and Lauren. Something abbout explaining a few things."

A few blocks down from the Bronze Black Cross' mansion, there was a modest hospital run secretly by the organization. On the second floor, Ladron was currently sitting in a chair, staring malevolently at the two tutors that had made his life hell for the past two months. Though he should probably feel guilty for putting them in the hospital, all he felt was smug satisfaction.

"Where to begin?..." Nick mused, rubbing his bandaged shoulder as he sat upright in his bed.

"How about the beginning?" Ladron offered, his voice dripping with poisonous sarcasm.

"Well, as you can probably guess, you're not the first demigod to ever walk this earth..." Nick began. "So there are reasons behind why we treated you the way we did."

"I'm sure..." Ladron inserted, still hostile.

"Anyway, when a demigod is born, they already have power locked away within them." Nick continued. "These powers can be accessed with relatively little difficulty. However, you are far more than an ordinary demigod, you are the Heir of Loki, his chosen successor. When he died, all of his power was transferred to you."

"This is where he loses me" Lauren interjected. The armsmaster who had no patience or talent for magic was propped up by numerous pillows while she listened to the others talk.

"Indeed. This is where things get complicated. Though a demigod can become an heir, they cannot immediately access their slain parent's authorities immediately. It requires a great stimulus, something that forces the body to enhance itself, prepare itself for the absurd influx of power that wielding divine authoritties requires. This is why we pushed you so hard" Nick concluded, sounding apologetic. "I'm sorry that we kept you in the dark, but you wouldn't have reacted in the same manner had you known." Ladron sat and considered this.

"We really wanted to help" Lauren said. "And this was the only safe way. Imagine what could have happened if you snapped in public! At least down in the bunkers the people knew the risks and had a much greater chance at survival." Ladron couldn't argue with that logic. Still, the anger that had been fostered over two months would not immediately disappear.

"Well" Ladron muttered. "At least there was a reason for you guys being assholes." He sighed and stood up. "Even though I understand what you're trying to say, and I know you're not lying" here Ladron's eyes seemed to glow briefly for emphasis, "Don't expect me to forgive you overnight. If we're done here, I think I'll go take a walk to cool off." So saying, Ladron left the hospital. He rapidly lost himself in the streets of Milan, letting his feet wander wherever they wanted. He was too busy mulling over his feelings to noticce the passage of time, and before he knew it, it was already dark out. Shrugging, he returned to the mansion, where he curled up quietly in his corner, and fell into a dreamless sleep.

Ladron woke without opening his eyes, he could sense something was wrong. He could hear Lilliana shifting uncomfortably beneath her sheets. Her shifting quickly became thrashing. Ladron sat up and opened his eyes. Lilliana was now calling out, yelling at something to stop. Walking over, Ladron stood next to her bed. Lilliana was sweating profusely.

"Stay away from me!" She screamed, raising her hands to defend herself from some unseen threat. Ladron ripped off her sleeping mask, at this rate she'd hurt herself with all the thrashing. He gripped her wrists and shook her a bit.

"Wake up, Lilliana" he said, "It's just a dream." She panicked even more.

"Get it off of me!" She screamed. "Make it stop! Make it stop!"

"Make what stop?"" Ladron exclaimed. "Lilliana, there's nothing here! You're just having a bad dream!" Ladron was scared. What the hell was going on? What should he be doing? All he could think of was to make sure she didn't hurt herself. Lilliana continued to convulse beneath Ladron, whose fear was continuing to grow wiith each passing minute. "Dammit, wake up! Lily!" he yelled, desperate. Lilliana's eyes finally snapped open.

"Ladron?" She said, her voice weak and frightened.

"Yeah, it's me" Ladron replied, relieved that she seemed to be better. "That must've been one hell of a nightmare."

"It seemed so real this time..." Lilliana whispered, shuddering a little. She unconsciously snuggled a little closer to Ladron, who hadn't dropped her wrists yet.

"What do you mean, 'this time'?" Ladron said, his interest aroused.

"I've had this dream before." Lilliana began. "It's a repeat of what I once saw through my spirit vision. I see a demon rise from the ashes of multiple gods, a tyrant without compare. In his rage he tears an entire continent apart. I watch as everything and everyone I know is destroyed before this monster. But the worst part..." she pasued and hiccuped a little. "The worst part, is that I somehow feel as if I am responsible for the creation of this monster." Unable to hold her composure completely, Lilliana began to cry. Ladron was speechless. He really did not know how to respond. He gently let go of Lilliana's wrists intending to go make some tea, but she grabbed his arm bbefore he could move. Startled, Ladron looked back down at her. "Please don't go..." Lilliana begged. "Please don't leave me alone..."

"I won't" Ladron promised. "Would you like some tea, cocoa, coffee?" Lilliana shook her head. "Alright..." Ladron said, unsure of where to go from here. He had no experience with girls, no idea of how to act as a source of comfort. Lilliana was still crying a little from the shock of her nightmare. Ladron looked around the room for inspiration, he spotted one of Lilliana's bookshelves. "Want me to read you a story?" he asked. Lilliana nodded, and Ladron walked over to the bookshelf. Picking a book at random, Ladron sat back down next to Lilliana and began to read.

"Chapter one, Milan. Christina was an elegant noblewoman, a member of the italian upper crust, and famous for the lavish parties that she threw on her estate..." Ladron continued reading through the long chapters, intrigued by the plot of the novel. It seemed somehow familiar... By the fourth chapter, the male lead had revealed a darker side of himself, acting as a dominating force in Christina's life. It finally hit Ladron like a bag of bricks. _This is one of Lilliana's works!_ he realized, glancing over at her. She looked calmer, her breathing was easier and her eyes were dry. _Why hasn't she noticed?_ Ladron wondered as he continued to read. When he noticed that Lilliana had fallen asleep again, Ladron closed the book and replaced it on the shelf. He curled up back in his corner, and promptly fell asleep.

In the morning, Lilliana woke to the smell of lemon tea being brewed. She yawned and stretched, then glanced over towards the table. Karen was sitting down, reading the morning paper. _If Karen isn't doing anything..._ Lilliana slowly reasoned, not yet fully awake. _Then who...?_ Her question was answered by Ladron walking out of the kitchenette, balancing a tray of breakfast sausages, a pitcher of orange juice and three glasses, and the tea kettle. For some reason he was wearing Karen's maid apron, a frilly white thing adorned with some lace, over his now signature worn-out jeans and blue sweatshirt. In all, he presented a rather hilarious picture.

"Ah, you're awake" Ladron said, somehow managing to place all of the food on the table without breaking anything. "You overslept a bit, so Karen taught me how cook using a stovetop." He turned back to the kitchenette. "I'll be back with some cereal and milk." Lilliana was chuckling behind her hand.

"I see that you're enjoying the beginning of your day, Mistress?" Karen asked, pouring herself some tea.

"Why did you make him cook?" Lilliana asked, going behind a screen to change out of her pajamas. She emerged a few minutes later wearing her usual black dress, blue and black cape, and white legings.

"He seemed interested in what I was doing, so I showed him a few things. Next thing I know, he'd taken responsibility for breakfast." As Karen finished explaining, Ladron came out with the promised cereal and milk, as well as a pile of delicious smelling scrambled eggs.

"Eat up" Ladron said, slipping the maid's apron from his neck and handing it back to Karen. "And don't be afraid to tell me it tastes horrible." The food was delicious, and both girls complimented him on it. "Eh, it was nothing." Ladron said, looking a little embarassed. "Anyway, what's first on the agenda for today?" he asked Lilliana.

"We're going to figure out exactly what authorities you have, as well as any restrictions that may be placed on them." she replied, calmly sipping some of the leftover tea. "I fully expect this to be a full day process."

In a matter of minutes, Lilliana and Ladron had left Karen to clean up the breakfast dishes and were facing off back in the underground training arena. Lilliana had already summoned Il Maestro, while Ladron was busy stretching.

"Whenever you're ready" she said, settling into a guard. Ladron nodded and turned his consciousness inward.

_You in there?_ he asked, searching for the fragment of Loki's soul.

_What do you want?_ it snapped. Apparently he had recovered some of his previous bravado.

_It's time to learn exactly what you can offer me_. Ladron said. _Now shut up and get to work._ Ladron felt power beginning to well up inside of him. He closed his eyes briefly, and when he reopened them, they blazed like twin sapphires. Grinning, Ladron charged Lilliana. She moved to intercept his wild dash, but he stopped several meters short. Still moving forward, Lilliana turned her momentum into a series of gracefully rapid attacks. Normally, this would have been more than enough to overwhelm Ladron, but through his eyes, he could see every move before it was made, and react accordingly. While learning of this new application of his eyes of insight, Ladron was also testing the limits of his enhanced body.

With the massive resevoir of power that he now had access to, his body had awakened its demigod properties. His strength and speed were increased, as well as his stamina and coordination. Curious, he let Lilliana land a series of blows on his body. Though he was cut and staggered back from their force, his bones seemed to be inhumanly dense and strong. Also, his body seemed to have a ridiculous resistance to pain, since even the one deep cut to his thigh failed to slow him down in any way. Though this information was all well and good, obtaining it had put him in a bad situation. Lilliana was taking advantage of his intentional lapse in defense to lock him down. Pulling more knowledge from Loki's spirit, Ladron broke his body apart into a flock of ravens, quickly escaping in all directions. However, doing this required intense concentration, and Ladron quickly returned to his normal form. Even as Lilliana turned to face him, Ladron summoned a new ability. Weaving his imagination into the world, Ladron created an illusory copy of himself, while simultaneuously bending light rays to make his real body invisible.

"Bring it" Ladron made his double talk, seeing Lilliana hesitate. Perhaps she had an inkling of what was going on? Ladron backed away from his double as Lilliana closed rapidly. Shockingly, his double was surprisingly durable. As long as Ladron kept feeding it power, it seemed to be able to replicate his every move, as well as affect physical objects. Feeling mentally strained and wanting to end the fight, Ladron snuck up behind Lilliana while using his double as a suicidal distraction. As Lilliana extended her arms and sword to block what she thought was a roundhouse kick from the front, Ladron kicked out her knee and put her into a reverse choke hold. After a few moments of shocked struggle, Lilliana tapped out. Ladron let his double fade, his own invisibility having ended when he attacked.

"Well" Lilliana said, blushing for some unknown reason. "You seem to have progressed a lot"

"Meh, not really" Ladron replied, helping her back to her feet. "It's all smoke and mirrors. If my opponent can see through it, I still don't have any actual combat skills to defend myself with."

"You have your reflexes" Lilliana reminded him. "And you seem to have unnatural strength" she rubbed her throat a little. Ladron looked a little sheepish.

"Sorry about that..." he said, feeling a little remorseful at not knowing the extent of his own strength. Suddenly he growled and clutched his leg. Now that the fight had ended, it seemed as though the combat high his body provided had worn off. Blood began to seep rapidly through his fingers. Lilliana gasped.

"I-I'm sorry!" she said, panicking a little. Ladron waved her off.

"It's...nothing" he said. That was a blatant lie, since Il Maestro had severed his femoral artery when Lillianaa had made the nasty gash on his thigh. Calling forth the first authority that he had consciously used, the blood of the giants, he stopped the bleeding and regenerated the cut blood vessels and tissue.

"That's...rather convenient" Lilliana said, staring at the freshly healed wound. Healing a similar wound though conventinoal magic would have taken far longer, let alone replacing the blood he had lost during the fight.

"Convenient, but draining" Ladron said, suddenly feeling woozy. Without thinking he planted a hand on Lilliana's shoulder to steady himself. Her blush, which had died down, returned somewhat. Ladron was too disoriented to notice. "I think that healing power cannibalizes the energy I already have inside of me..." he mused, suddenly feeling rather hungry. "You ready for lunch?"

A few minutes later, the two of them were seated across from one another at a pizzeria. While Lilliana was enjoying a slice of pizza and a salad, Ladron's hunger drove him to consume several sausage calzones. To pass the time while she waited for Ladron to finish, Lilliana brought him up to speed on recent events.

"Two heretic gods recently manifested themselves near Sardinia and Sicily." She began. "One was Verethragna, the Persian god of war and victory. The other was Melquart, king of the Phoeniciann gods. Apparently, Verethragna desired a powerful opponent, and decided to awaken Melquart for the purpose of a duel. However, they were interrupted by Erica Blandelli and a heretofore unknown japanese teenaged boy. Using a grimoir imbued with the power of Prometheus, this japanese teen managed to defeat Verethragna, becoming this world's seventh campione. Afterwards, Melquart disappeared, probably to heal the wounds he received. This japanese teen has returned to his home country, followed by Erica, who seems to have renounced her allegiance to the Copper Black Cross." Lilliana looked a little puzzled. "I wonder why though? She's always been so intent on becoming the Diavolo Rosso and surpassing her uncle..." Ladron shrugged, downing his glass of water.

"Perhaps she decided that joining up with a new campione would be more exciting?" he suggested, picking up his fourth calzone.

"That does sound like something Erica would do..." Lilliana muttered, mindlessly stabbing her salad withh her fork. She was quietly contemplating a piece of information that she had chosen not to share. According to information gathered through official and unoffical channels, as well as the judicious use of witchcraft, Lilliana knew that Erica and the japanese campione had been pretending to be lovers for unknown reasons. At least, Lilliana desperately hoped that they were pretending. However, Erica's seemingly casual abandonment of her beloved Copper Black Cross was troubling. _She either actually loves him, or she is just after the prestige that comes with being the close assistant of a campione..._ Lilliana thought. Either way, Erica and Lilliana shared an intensely competitive relationship, neither wanted to be outdone by the other. _How can I compete with this though..._ Lilliana brooded, her face unconsciously growing glum.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Ladron asked, noticing Lilliana's change in manner. Lilliana snapped back to reality.

"It's nothing important" she said, dismissing the issue from her mind. The rest of the day was spent honing Ladron's skill with his authorities. Though his powers were exceptional when he could keep a clear mind, they became laughably weak whenever he became distracted or lost his head. As such, he rapidly picked up on the talent for weaving illusions into existence, using them both as distractions and as a venue for delivering attacks. Though he knew that the cursed Spear of Mistletoe had far greater combat potential, he refused to manifest it.

Evening arrived, and finally Lilliana put up her sword. Both she and Ladron were exhausted, but it had felt good to have a long day of exercise. They grabbed a quick dinner at the bunker's cafeteria before heading back to their room. When they arrived, Ladron instantly collapsed in his corner, mumbled a quick goodnight, and fell asleep. Lilliana sat on the edge of her bed and slowly kicked off her boots. Resting her chin on her hands, she briefly brooded on how she could somehow top Erica, but quickly gave it up. She had little experiece with boys. Completely unaware of her own fairy-like charm, she blamed this on her normally being too reserved to catch their attention. Too tired to contemplate further, Lilliana sighed, curled up top of her sheets, and fell asleep.

It was the strangest dream. Lilliana was back in the underground arena, presumably waiting for Ladron. However, her opponent was someone else. A girl with long blonde hair and a body that supermodels would kill for stepped forward. She was grinning from ear to ear.

"Lily!" Erica exclaimed, summoning Cuore de Lione. "It has been far too long since we last crossed blades!" Lilliana shrugged, Il Maestro already in hand. If Erica wanted a duel, there was still time before Ladron came back. The two girls took up their stances, facing off with about ten meters between them. Erica, never one to let an opportunity to display her bravery pass by, charged. It was a glorious charge, rapid and powerful. It was a tactic that Erica had used countless times to great effect. Though Lilliana knew that they should be equals, Erica's charge broke her guard and sent her flying back.

"Ach..." Lilliana grunted, stumbing to her feet. Even as she tried to raise Il Maestro in defense, Erica began to beat her down without mercy. In this dream, Erica was far faster and stronger than in real life.

"Come on, Lily!" The dream Erica taunted. "You can't let yourself be seen like this, especially in front of the new campione." A shadowy, unknown form coalesced behind Erica, a blazing golden sword in his hand.

"How can you hope to control that monster you call 'squire' at this pathetic level of power?" the figure mocked, his voice high and clear. Lilliana shook her head.

"He's not a monster! And I've defeated him before!" she exclaimed, her confidence somewhaat shaken.

"You really don't see him for what he is, Lily?" Erica mocked, hauling Lilliana back to her feet. "Very well, if he isn't a monster, then he can be reasoned with, even in this state." Waving her hand, Erica gestured at a section of wall. A second later, it shattered under the force of a colossal blow. Several limp and bloody bodies flew through the air before landing with sickening crunches. Ladron leapt after them, the cursed spear of mistletoe in hand. He looked horrible, with blood staining his clothing, dripping from his fingers, from the corners of his mouth.

"Do you not see the darkness within him?" the shadowy figure asked, pointing at the seething Ladron with his golden sword. Lilliana stared at this demonic Ladron, who was busy choking the life out of a knight that he had been carrying in one hand, grinning the whole time.

"You're lying!" Lilliana screamed, tears forming in her eyes. "He isn't like this!"

"Isn't he?" the godslayer countered. "You have foreseen what he can do, you know that you are responsible. Kill him now, when he is weak, avert a crisis while there is still time!" Lilliana shook her head, backing away until she hit a wall. She watched the knight fall lifeless from Ladron's grasp. She desperately tried to call out, to make Ladron hear reason, but no sound came from he throat. She couldn't move, even as Ladron fixated his blazing grey eyes on her and charged. Time seemed to slow as he flew across the distance that seperated them.

"Even now," the godslayer asked. "Even as he tries to kill you in blind rage, you will not acknowledge that he is a monster?" Lilliana shook her head, then screamed as the spear pierced her chest.

"Even as your blood stains the ground, will you not acknowledge him?" Erica mocked. "You are blind, Lily."

"Lilliana!" Ladron growled, a bloodthirsty grin on his face. The arena faded, leaving Lilliana and the crazed Ladron alone in a dark void of space. "Lilliana!" He growled again, his grey eyes burning with fire.

"Grey...eyes?..." Lilliana muttered, trying not to vomit blood. Since when had Ladron had grey eyes? Weren't they...? "You're...not real..." Lilliana accused. "Let go of my mind!"

"You will die for your insolence, Lilliana!" The false Ladron yelled, and Lilliana screamed as the pain in her chest drastically increased. Yet it was almost as if there were two voices. One was the loud, violent yells of the false Ladron. The other was faint, desperate, pleading with her, calling her name.

"Lilliana! Wake up! Please wake up!"

Lilliana screamed again, but not in pain. She screamed to rid her ears of the false Ladron's yells and growls, to make room for the quiet, pleading voice in her mind. She closed her eyes. She felt a warm softness pressing into her back, even as the pain in her chest receded, which was replaced with a sense of pressure. She took a shuddering breath and opened her eyes. Ladron was crouching over her, one knee on either side of her chest. His hands were stretched out to the side, pinning her arms. Ladron had a look of worry and panic that reached even into his eyes. Due to their position, their faces were very close. Seeing her relax, Ladron let go of her arms and slid off her chest. He sat down on the edge of the bed, and watched as Lilliana straightened up against the headboard and drew her knees to her chest.

"Tea?" He offered, not really suree how to respond to the situation. Lilliana shook her head. Though she was desperately trying not to show it, her confidence was shaken. Badly.

"I..." Lilliana began, not sure how to phrase her question. "Do you know what spirit vision is?"

"A divine oracle, such as wisdom of the gods or knowledge of divinity, granted through spiritual insight onto the astral plane?" Ladron responded, trying to remember from his lessons from Nick.

"More or less. Only, it can also be used to call forth visions of the future, assuming that the event in question has an immense amount of divine energy behind it." Lilliana swallowed, wanting to be wrong but also not wanting to keep information from Ladron. "The nightmare I had last night, I've been having it for awhile. It's a replay of an oracle I received right after we escaped from Thor. It showed me the rise of an unstoppable demon, a murderer of gods who devastated a continent. Also, the oracle imparted a sense that I was, will be, somehow responsible for this demon's rise." Ladron whistled.

"No pressure, right?" he said, only half in jest.

"That's not helping!" Lilliana snapped. "Alone, this nightmare would be enough to make anyone paranoid. But, if you combone it with this night's nightmare..." she trailed off and looked up at Ladron, not wanting to continue. His eyes were glowing keenly.

"The eyes of the witch-maiden, two visions complete..." Ladron muttered, falling back into his old manner of speech. "The assignment of importance has been revealed, yet, is not welcome. Unsettled, it has made you..." He shook his head and the glow faded. "Who is implicated? It's obviously someone you know, or you wouldn't be so upset."

"It's..." Lilliana couldn't make eye contact. "It's...you..." She instinctively tensed, drawing on her knowledge of the temper possessed by beings akin to gods on earth. Ladron simply sat there, his face impassive.

"Alright..." he said, his voice rather calm. Lilliana looked up in surprise.

"You're not angry?" she asked, her voice quiet..

"No" he responded, a little confused. "I know that the bit of Loki that lives in me would love to take over and cause mayhem, so your conclusion based on your dreams makes sense." Lilliana stared at him, shocked that he was taking it so calmly. "You said that you felt as if you were responsible for the demon going out of control, right?" Lilliana nodded. "Don't. If that bastard takes over, it's my own fault for not keeping a lid on him."

"But..." Lilliana interjected, intending to argue.

"No." Ladron cut her off firmly. "I won't have you blaming yourself for my...problem." Lilliana sat there, amazed that Ladron was willing to shoulder all the responsibility for himself. It ran completely counter to the personalities of the two devil kings she knew, as well as Loki's.

_He really is unique..._ she mused, not realizing that she was gazing at Ladron rather intensely. He shifted a little.

"You want me to get you something?" he asked, unsure of what to make of her stare. Lilliana snapped out of her reverie and blushed.

"Perhaps you could keep reading that book?" she asked. Strangely, she sounded a little embarrassed.

"Sure" Ladron said, sliding off the bed and walking over to the bookshelf. He picked up the book from the other night and sat back down on the side of thee bed opposite to Lilliana. "What do you last remember?"

"The main characters were sharing a fancy candle lit dinner, and Richard had just slipped something into Christina's drink." Ladron nodded, flipping through pages until he found the spot they had left off at. He read through the dinner scene, which went more or less how he expected it to. The 'something' that had been given to Christina was a drug that laid her out for an hour. When she woke up, she was with Richard in her hotel room. Ladron's cheeks grew slightly red, and he paused in his reading.

"What's wrong?" Lilliana asked sleepily. Ladron looked over to answer, and was surprised to find that Lilliana had shiftted position while he was reading. She was curled up next to him, her head slightly raised. Her eyes were only half open, and her general air of sleepiness, combined with her quiet voice, made her somehow cute. Ladron ignored the changed situation and responded.

"Do you really want me to read the next scene?" he asked.

"Of course, one must read every line in a novel, since there is no set forrmula for telling what will be important to the plot and what won't be." Her tired voice was matter of fact, and she let her head fall back down.

"Alright..." Ladron said, taking a deep breath. He continued reading. Though somewhat embarrassed about the book, he didn't even notice when he fell asleep.

It was a beautifully sunny day when Ladron woke up. He sighed. _That was an interesting night..._ He tried to stretch. His arms refused to move. He looked down and noticed that his arms and waist were encircled by a pair of slender arms. Tracing them back to their body, Ladron realized that Lilliana was sleeping right next to him, pressed against his side. It took him several seconds for this to fully register in his brain.

"Eagh!" Ladron exclaimed, breaking Lilliana's surprising grip and managing to scoot himself away from her. A second later, Karen backed into the room followed by a food cart. Turning around, she froze as she took in the scene. Finally, her surprised expression melted into a devil's grin, and she chuckled.

"Enjoy your evening?" she asked playfully. Ladron sighed. It was going to be a long, awkward day.

Author's Note:

Alright guys, apparently I can work faster than I thought, since this is up before the new year. That being said, I have a question for any who wish to answer. Shall I devote a chapter or two to Ladron's training, or do a minor timeskip to increase his power and finally get out of this five chapter long exposition? I've got a poll up on my profile page for you guys to post your answers. As a second question to all who wish to make themselves heard, I'll take votes on any character from the Anime or light novels that you want to see Ladron square off against. I'd prefer PM answers, but reviews are great as well. Other than that, I've been discussing some new authorities with some friends, so Ladron won't suffer like Godou from only having a set number of powers. (I'm only on the 13th light novel, if he gets new authorities, don't spoil it please). Happy New Year guys!


	6. Welcome to the Masquerade

**Ch 6 Welcome to the Masquerade**

Steel crashed with steel as two lithe figures danced around each other. Lilliana frowned in concentration as she elegantly swung Il Maestro, locking eyes with the equally serious Ladron. Over the past few months, Ladron had improved dramatically. He had picked up swordsmanship to a commendable level, as well as increasing his mastery over Loki's authorities. This increased level of skill now led to the long stalemated duel the two were engaged in. Though they had started early in the morning, it was now nearly dinnertime and there had been no clear winner. The two backed off for a momentary break in the action. Lilliana dried her palms and swept a few unruly strands of hair out of her face. Ladron also shook his long hair out of his face, taking a moment to flourish his sword. In spite of herself, Lilliana was slightly distracted by Ladron's simplistic showing off. He had often performed the same flourish when they had worked together on minor assignments given to them by the Bronze Black Cross. It brought back pleasant memories.

Ladron took advantage of Lilliana's momentary reverie. Without fanfare, he charged. He performed a series of rapid swings and stabs, which Lilliana dodged. Slipping to the side, she brought Il Maestro up even as Ladron's blade came down. They both froze, their swords at each other's necks.

"Another draw, eh?" Ladron grinned, lowering his sword. Lilliana also smiled, relaxing her stance and dispelling Il Maestro.

"When will you learn how to win?" Lilliana joked, playfully punching Ladron in the arm. Ladron was about to reply when a representative from the Bronze Black Cross' high command burst into the arena.

"Dame Kranjcar! Your esteemed Uncle wishes to speak to you, he says it's urgent!" Lilliana nodded and walked off. Ladron moved to follow, but the messenger stopped him. "He had a different assignment for you" he said, looking slightly nervous.

The office of Lilliana's uncle was truly grand. It was spacious, well decorated with trophies and banners. Sunlight streamed in through a massive floor-to-ceiling window behind an impressive mahogany desk. Sitting in one of the uncomfortably hard chairs in front of the desk, Lilliana respectfully cleared her throat.

"You requested my presence, esteemed Uncle?" The high-backed chair did not swivel around, but a rasping, self-important voice floated back to fill the room.

"Indeed" it said. "As you well know, it is our primary purpose to aid all campione when they make a direct request or demand." Lilliana nodded, even though she knew he wouldn't see it. "As such, you have been cordially invited to a grand ball, hosted by Marquis Voban." Lilliana was shocked. Marquis Voban was many things; cruel, sadistic, opulent in his tastes. But hosting a grand ball? "Seeing as it was impossible to refuse, I took the liberty of drafting a suitable reply, all you need do is sign it." Lilliana noticed the letter and envelope sitting in front of her. She obediently put her name to the letter, enclosed it in the envelope, and used a mailing spell to send it to Voban's mansion.

"Did the invitation say that I was free to bring a guest?" Lilliana asked, not wanting to step back into Voban's home without some form of backup.

"No, it didn't. However, seeing as the ball is two days from now, I would suggest that you obtain suitable attire as soon as possible." A hand appeared from behind the chair, and waved in dismissal. Sighing, Lilliana got up and left the office. After she had eaten dinner, she returned to her rooms. Surprisingly, Karen was waiting for her with a measuring tape, notepad, and a book of designs.

"Your uncle tasked me with ensuring that you got a proper dress for Voban's grand ball" Karen informed her, beginning to take measurements. Lilliana nodded, and looked around for something to think about while Karen was busy.

"So, where did Ladron disappear to?" Lilliana asked. "Doesn't he normally come straight back to the room after dinner?"

"Normally, yes." Karen replied, rolling up the tape measure and glancing at the notebook to make sure she hadn't missed anything. "But he was given a special assignment. A multi-day field test of new survival gear. Apparently it was so important, that he had to begin immediately."

"Oh" Lilliana said, saddened a little that they didn't even have time to say goodbye. _Not that Ladron would have cared. _Lilliana grumbled in her mind. Though he could be rather attentive and caring when the situation demanded it, he was otherwise woefully inept at guaging others' feelings. _Now why on earth did I think that?_ she asked herself, clearing her head. Karen smiled, she always found it easy to read her Mistress' emotions.

"Oh, is the princess sad that she didn't get to give her brave knight a good luck kiss?" Karen asked, her voice equal parts playful and demonic. Lilliana blushed to the roots of her hair.

"E-Eh?" She exclaimed.

"Oh that's right, you like being formal and getting the facts straight." Karen admonished herself. "In that case, does the grand knight regret that she was unable to offer a suitable farewell to her noble squire?" Lilliana's blush grew deeper.

"N-N-No one said anything about k-k-kissing!" Lilliana stammered. "I'm just...surprised! Yes, surprised. That he didn't come to tell me himself!"

"Mm-Hmm" Karen mused, glancing through the catalogue of example dresses. "Here, this looks like a suitable design" she said, pointing out an opulent dress that was being modeled by the best talent money could buy. "Too bad Ladron isn't able to attend, I could have easily made him a matching suit. You two would have been the talk of the ball." Lilliana's blush, which had faded somewhat, returned in full force.

"A-As if I w-would wish for such noteriety!" Lilliana said, her inner calm completely shaken. "Can we not just focus on the task at hand?"

"Of course, Mistress" Karen grinned. "If you don't like this one, perhaps this?" She pointed out a dress with a low neckline and an even lower back. "Or this?" A simpler looking dress with a very short skirt.

"Or maybe this?" Lilliana interjected in a high voice, pointing out a modestly cut dress, adorned with a single flower on the shoulder. Karen looked at it skeptically.

"Are you sure, Mistress?" she asked. "For a grand ball hosted by a campione, and one truly worthy of the title 'devil-king' at that, doesn't it seem a little...plain?"

"It's perfect." Lilliana asserted, not wanting to go through the more indecent options that were available.

"Alright then" Karen said, closing the book and holding it under her arm. "I'll have it done by tomorrow evening, and then off to the grand ball with you!" She bowed herself out of the room. Lilliana yawned, kicking off her boots and throwing herself back on her bed. She hadn't really noticed it, but it had been a long day. She slowly swapped her usual blue and black attire for her nightgown and crawled beneath the sheets. The sound of Ladron's regular, deep breathing was noticibly absent. It was a small thing, but it stirred some emotion within Lilliana. Though their relationship would best be described as 'comrades,' Lilliana still felt close to Ladron. She couldn't quite put a finger on what it was that made him so memorable. Though he wasn't handsome per se, his features did have a sort of plain charm to them. He wasn't overly emotional, but he was an excellent friend when Lilliana needed one. Lilliana sighed, deciding to leave her emotions the way they were. However, as she drifted off to sleep, Lilliana couldn't help thinking that she missed Ladron already.

Two days later, Lilliana found herself on a special express train to the Balkans. She wasn't alone. With her were maybe a dozen other girls in fancy dress, who had also been 'invited' to Voban's grand ball. Lilliana started trying to figure out why they had all been selected. It was well known that Voban had a distaste for social activity, so whatever he had invited the girls for, it was clearly not just a ball. As she continued to look around, she began to recognize a few faces. As recognition grew, so did the suspicion that she was missing something. She knew that she and these girls had something in common, but what? She was interrupted in her thinking by the entry of another passenger. She was around Lilliana's height, pale, with waist-length black hair and green eyes. Like Lilliana, her dress was simple, and her face was downcast and shy. Though there were other seats available, she walked over to Lilliana's.

"Um..." she said, her voice almost too quiet to hear. "Would you mind if I sat with you?" Lilliana nodded and moved over to make room. "Thank you" she said, breaking into a small smile and sitting down. They sat in silence for several minutes. Frustrated by her unsuccessful efforts to read Voban's true intentions, Lilliana sighed and sat back in her seat. With a lack of anything better to do, Lilliana took to observing her companion out of the corner of her eye. She was sitting with her face down, gazing at her gloved hands, which were folded in her lap. She was obviously shy, and whenever one of the others tried to make her acquaintance, she started suddenly and looked slightly panicked. Resigned to having silent company, Lilliana passed the rest of the trip by taking a nap.

"Um..." it was the girl from before, gently shaking Lilliana's shoulder. "We've arrived." Lilliana opened her eyes and nodded. She got up and the two girls stepped out onto the platform, where they were met by a professional driver. The uniformed man ushered the girls into a limousine, and set out for Voban's mansion. When they arrived, Lilliana looked up at the imposingly tall and ancient building. The last time she was here... She shook her head, preferring not to revisit those unpleasant memories. They were met at the door by another uniformed man, who looked rather bored as he checked off the girls' names from a long list.

"...Lilliana Kranjcar and Christina di Milano..." He glanced back and forth between the girls' faces and his list. "Welcome to Marquis Voban's grand ball" so saying, he opened the door for them.

Walking inside was like stepping back in time. Though many of the fashions displayed by the guests were modern, the ball's decorations, chamber music, and ambiance were all from another era. Lilliana and Christina wandered through the ballroom, taking in outdated but still impressive decor. Leaving Christina at the appetizers table, Lilliana sat on a bench with an excellent view of the entire room. She gazed around, looking for anything that could indicate Voban's true intent. Unsurprisingly, though she saw a massive female crowd, she saw no signs of magic, nor of Voban himself. The air buzzed with idle conversation, a pleasant sound . If she ignored her past experiences, Lilliana could almost convince herself that nothing was wrong. She even thought that Voban had expanded his collection of tapestries since she had last been here. Christina came out of the crowd and sat down next to Lilliana, two plates of food and some utensils in her hands.

"I noticed that you were sitting here alone and I thought that you might be hungry..." she trailed off, seeing Lilliana's serious expression. "Oh dear, I did something wrong, didn't I? D-don't worry about it, I'll leave..." she seemed close to tears. Lilliana relaxed, letting her seriousness drain away.

"You did nothing wrong, Christina" she said, catching the girl by her arm. "I just got caught up in some bad memories and forgot to be polite." Christina smiled a little and sat back down, offering one of the plates to Lilliana. The two ate in silence, each absorbed in their own thoughts. Lilliana tried to make conversation or even small talk a few times, but gave it up after Christina refused to offer more than one sentence in reply to anything.

Finding herself bored, Lilliana let her mind and eyes wander, until they fell on the ceiling. There was something off about it's appearance. Closing her eyes, Lilliana summoned the witches eye, a spell for magically enhancing the caster's sight, as well as scrying. Through the witches eye, Lilliana took a close look at the ceiling. Though wooden in appearance, the grain seemed to flow unnaturally. On closer inspection, Lilliana realized that this was because the entire ceiling had been recently repainted. But why paint it to look like wood? Lilliana was snapped out of her concentration by someone calling her name.

"Lily! I knew I would find you here!" the cheerful voice rang out. Opening her eyes, Lilliana saw a blonde beauty in a flowing red dress walking purposefully towards her. Apparently, Erica had been on the guest list. As Lilliana opened her mouth to reply, Erica cut her off. "Look, I'd love to chat, but I'm busy looking for someone. She's japanese, short, has brown hair to the middle of her back, and is probably wearing a japanese miko outfit. Do you think you could locate her for me?" Erica gave Lilliana a charming smile. "Please?" Lilliana scowled.

"Fine..." she mumbled, and closed her eyes again. While searching the house with the witches eye, she could vaguely hear Erica introducing herself to Christina in the background. Lilliana let the eye wander across the ballroom, through hallways, up and down flights of stairs. She found no one that matched Erica's description.

"Are you sure your information is accurate?" Lilliana asked impatiently, opening her eyes. Erica's smile slipped a little.

"You can't find her? But I know I saw her come in..." Erica sounded puzzled.

"Well" Lilliana snapped, causing Christina to cringe a little, "I can't find her. And the only place that I can't see into is... is..." she trailed off, realizing the implications of the situation. "Your friend, she wouldn't happen to be Mariya Yuri, would she?" Erica nodded, not bothering to question how her friend knew that name. Lilliana swore under her breath. "This is bad. The only place I cannot see with the witches eye is Voban's 'throne room.' The last time I was here...well...he summoned a heretic god by using the collective power of many miko. Mariya survived because she was the most powerful there..."

"And if he intends to perform the ritual again..." Erica said, catching on to Lilliana's thoughts.

"Exactly." Lilliana asserted. Christina looked between the two of them, her eyes wide.

"C-Could someone explain what's going on?" she asked timidly. Lilliana looked at her.

"There's no time. Listen, Christina. I need you to get as many of these girls out of here as possible, ok?" Christina nodded slowly.

"If you run into trouble that you or the girls cannot handle" Erica interjected, "Break a window and call out 'In the name of Erica Blandelli, I beseech thee, Kusanagi Godou, to come to my side.' That will call in our backup." Lilliana looked at Erica with startled eyes. "What? You didn't think that I would be here and _he_ wouldn't be?" Erica asked, her smile a little mischevious. "Come on, we're wasting time." The two grand knights stood up and strode off through the party, leaving Christina behind. As she sat there, her delicate expression and shy attitude drained away, and were replaced by a satisfied grin and extreme confidence.

"A simple evacuation with a campione as backup, eh?" she mused, her eyes sparkling a little. "Sounds like fun."

Lilliana and Erica sprinted through the massive mansion side by side. At their enhanced speed, it was only a minute before they stood before the doors to Voban's 'throne room.' Without hesitation, Erica kicked them inwards, summoning Cuore di Lione as she charged inside. Lilliana summoned Il Maestro, and followed her companion at a less reckless pace. The girl they had been looking for, Mariya Yuri, was kneeling in front of Voban's overlarge throne. As Erica rapidly closed the distance between herself and Voban, the ancient campione raised a hand, summoning a pack of savage wolves. Her charged checked, Erica was forced to stand down. The odds were too greatly against her. Lilliana stepped forward, but also stopped when some of the wolves turned their attention to her. Voban smiled, an evil, uncaring expression.

"Well well, if it isn't the servant-girl of the newest campione." he was relaxed, calm, completely in control. "I thought you two learned your lesson back in Tokyo. What bothersome existences..." his voice trailed off, his momentary interest in the sudden interruption fading. "Dispose of them" he said, waving a hand at his wolves. The pack growled barked, their jaws slavering as they moved with lightning swiftness. Erica and Lilliana responded with equal speed, their blades tracing brief flashes of light through the air. Using flight magic, Lilliana leapt to Erica's side in the center of the ring of wolves. Standing back to back, the two knights managed to slowly push back the pack of wolves, and advanced. Voban look of boredom slowly grew into one of interest again.

"So, you can fight..." he mused, the beginnings of a grin on his face. "Then you must have greater opponents" so saying, he invoked another one of his authorities. From inky shadows, rotting corpses in all manner of gear arose. Among them were the remains of many great knights, heroes that Voban had slain when their actions inconvenienced him. Both in number and in skill, these were far greater foes than the wolves. Before anyone had time to act, the entire mansion shook as an earth-shattering crash exploded from the direction of the ballroom.

"What in hell?!" Voban roared, standing up suddenly, abandoning his fight with the girls. As the mansion shook again, the piercing sound of girls screaming could be faintly heard. Their duel forgotten, Voban and the three girls sprinted back through the hallways, skidding to a stop when they reentered the ballroom. The place was in shambles. Tapestries had been torn apart and blown away, windows demolished, tables overturned, the musicians scattered. Panicked girls ran in all directions, while the calmer ones tried to restore some semblance of order. This milling confusion paled in comparison to the chaos in the center of the ballroom. A tall, bearded figure was standing firm in the center of a galaxy of runes, his long grey hair flowing in some invisible wind. He radiated the unmistakeable aura of a god, and a powerful one at that. Two figures could be seen trying to break his barrier of runes, while simultaneously fighting off the two divine wolves that the god had summoned. One was a tall, tan japanese male in his late teens, supposedly Kusanagi Godou, glowing with power as he delivered strikes with superhuman strength. The other was Christina, wielding a simplistic looking sword as she elegantly danced around the wolves, attacking their exposed flanks and limbs.

"Owen!" Voban exclaimed, looking in confusion at the god. "What is this?! You promised me a heretic god, not chaos and a god slayer!" The god looked over his shoulder at Voban.

"Everyone lies, Voban" he said, his voice ancient and resonating with power. "Owen was a disguise, a means for me to manipulate you withouut arousing your suspicions. My real name, is Odin." As the god spoke his name, his one grey eye blazed with power, and a shockwave radiated out from him, blasting Godou, Christina, and several of the terrified miko away.

Walls of runes now surrounded the ballroom, preventing any attempt at escape. Erica ran over to Godou and helped him to his feet. They seemed to be in a rapid, urgent discussion. Lilliana had moved to help Christina in a similar manner, but she had rolled with the blast and was already standing, her sword at the ready. Odin raised his voice, issuing a divine command.

"Miko, thou shalt serve a glorious purpose here today!" he began. "My wayward son, Loki, became a heretic god not so very long ago. Though he was defeated and sentenced to Hel, his demigod son still walks Midgard. If this monster is allowed to live, he will rip apart both your world and Asgard. I call upon you to summon my son, Thor, as a heretic god. He will have the strength and purpose to hunt down this threat to our existences. In my name I command thee!" The last sentence was delivered in the ringing tones of one accustomed to obedience. It was an irresistible command. The panicked miko calmed themselves almost instantly, looks of blank concentration on their faces. Without hesitation, they began the ritual.

"You may not be a heretic god" growled Voban, seething in anger. "But I will have your head, Odin!" raising his hand, Voban summoned a massive storm. With lightning and winds flying through the already smashed windows, Voban strove against Odin's protective barrier of runes. Odin barely glanced his way.

"It would take a dozen godslayers of your caliber a hundred years of effort to break my shield." he declared disdainfully. Erica, Mariya, Lilliana, Christina, and Godou stood in a small group, staring at the furious Voban and the calm Odin. The divine wolves had already faded out of existence, their presence no longer needed.

"If only we knew the origin of Odin's authority over runes!" Erica sighed. "Godou could sever it with with the Sword." Christina looked up.

"I know the origins of Odin's authorities" she said, her usual shy demeanor gone. Erica looked her up and down, as if silently judging her.

"Alright" she said. "I assume you can use instruction magic?" Christina nodded. "Then use it on me. I'll take care of arming Godou." Christina nodded again, and placed a hand on Erica's shoulder. They both closed their eyes as the information flowed rapidly between them. After a few seconds, they broke contact with each other. "Now comes the fun part!" Erica said, grabbing Godou by the arm. He looked a little panicked.

"E-E-Erica!" he protested, trying to shake her loose. "Are we seriously g-going to do th-th-_that_ in public?!" Erica smiled. It was a lioness' smile, the smile of a hunter having cornered its prey.

"You know it's the only way." her voice had become somewhat seductive. "But you're right, there are a lot of onlookers." She gazed around at the others. Lilliana and Christina were confused, but Mariya was blushing, knowing what was coming next. "Why don't you all go and try disrupting the ritual? It'll buy us some time" Erica more commanded than suggested. Mariya was already shaking with exhaustion, but Lilliana and Christina both shrugged and moved off.

Lilliana focussed her will, trying to sever or misdirect leylines of magic energy or disrupt the miko's thought processes. She was eventually joined by Mariya after she had taken a brief rest. Christina wasn't so subtle. Dispelling her sword, she relaxed her arms and stiffened her hands. With swift, precise strikes, she moved among the miko, throwing them to the floor, clapping their ears, anything to shatter their concentration or break Odin's control without seriously injuring them. While these sabotaging efforts were going on, Erica was busy transferring the knowledge of Odin's authorities to Godou. If a fight hadn't been going on, everyone in the room would have been staring at them. As it was, they were lost in their own private world, at least for a minute or two.

Noticing the decreased amount of energy entering the ritual, Odin finally took action. With a flick of his wrist, several runes spontaneously burned into existence around Voban. In a burst of light, they released their divine energy, blasting Voban across the ballroom, making a crater halfway up the opposite wall. Odin then swept his hand up and brought it down in a grand flourish, pointing at Mariya, Lilliana, and Christina. More runes burned themselves into existence, immobilizing the fighters and inducing severe headaches. Mariya and Lilliana sank to their knees, crippled by the pain in their minds. Christina was leaning against the wall for balance, one hand concealing her face. Erica and Godou seperated, the one looking satisfied, the other blazed with new power. Odin raised his hand to summon another blast of power, but Godou acted first.

"I am the strongest bearer of victory! Obstructions, be dismissed from my path!" he cried, raising his own hand. As runes burned into existence around Godou, so did dozens of balls of golden light. Though these were consumed in the ensuing rune explosions, they served their purpose as an initial shield. As Godou continued to chant, more balls of light were summoned.

"You are Odin, named all-father of the Aesir. It is you that sits alone on Hlidskjalf, keeping eternal watch over the nine worlds!" Odin looked vaguely impressed, even as he continued to weave runes into existence. "You are the ardent seeker of knowledge and wisdom, that you might preserve the world and gods even after Ragnarok, the end of all time." Godou continued, the spheres of light beginning to actively hunt Odin's runes, containing their power. "Ever vigilant in this quest, you sought the runes, the knowledge of which you payed for by spearing your own chest, and hanging from Yggdrasil's branches for nine days and nine nights. The payment given, you were reborn with the runes' power over fate and magic!" His incantation complete, the spheres of light no longer contained Odin's runes but shattered them, releasing their power harmlessly. Creating a spear out of some of the spheres, Godou pierced Odin's runic shield, and then pierced Odin himself. All remaining runes vanished, their power source suddenly severed.

"Well done, godslayer." Odin complimented, looking down at the spear of light extending from his chest. "But, this body is merely a disguise, a form taken to blend in with humans. Though the runes are gone, my life is not so easily taken!" So saying, he ripped the spear from his chest and shattered it with a surge of divine power. However, before Odin could retaliate, there was a thunderous crash, and a massive surge of power. Many of the miko collapsed, either exhausted or dead, no one knew. Looking at the ceiling, where various glowing sigils and markings had been concealed, Odin smiled. "It seems as though my presence is no longer required." he observed, watching as lightning coalesced into a large, muscular figure. "Heretic Thor will destroy you, and then proceed with his hunt." Without further conversation, Odin let his mortal form fade, transporting himself back to the divine realm from whence he came.

The miko that hadn't already fallen unconscious seemed to wake from the stupor that Odin had put them in. As they gazed around at the destruction around them, many panicked, others tried to help the injured, others fled. Lilliana and Mariya were slowly recovering from their ordeal with Odin's runes. Godou was cursing the fact that his sword could only be used against one specific deity per day. Erica was gazing up at Heretic Thor, trying to come up with a battle plan that wasn't suicidal. Christina was also looking up, her expression unreadable. The silence of the moment was finallly shattered by an arrogant voice.

"Leave us, you weaklings!" Voban ordered, striding forward as he surrounded himself with his usual wolf pack. "My hunt is about to begin!" The miko hurriedly obeyed, those who were unharmed helping those who weren't. Erica looked between Voban and her companions.

"I say we let them kill each other, anyone object?" she asked, lowering Cuore di Lione. Before anyone could respond, Heretic Thor let out a loud bellow, and gazed down at what remained of the ballroom. As his eyes slid from person to person, they finally stopped on Lilliana.

"Maiden, I know thee" he said, his voice seeming to be only barely controlled. "Thou knowest my prey, the demigod son of Loki, does thou not?" Lilliana's already pale face was as white as a sheet. To have the full attention and power of a Heretic God focussed on oneself was a truly terrifying experience. "Tell me, maiden. I must know of him!" Heretic Thor commanded. He was different from the last time Lilliana had seem him. Before, he seemed weaker, as if part of his power had gone into maintaining his sanity and rightful place among mythology. Now, he was a being with a single purpose, hunting Ladron to the ends of the earth. He wouldn't care about the destruction he caused, so long as he completed his task. While Lilliana's brain froze in fear, Heretic Thor's patience ran out. Roaring, he raised Mjolnir to smite her with divine lightning.

"DIE!" Voban roared, his wolf pack leaping through the air, latching onto Thor's arms and legs, one even managed to sink its jaws into his neck. Thor growled in pain, and instead used Mjolnir's lightning to electrocute the wolves, leaving only ashes behind. He turned to face Voban, rage apparent on his face.

"Begone, godslayer!" He bellowed, unleashing a miniature thunderstorm. Even with his own storm-based authorities, Voban was unable to compete with Heretic Thor in terms of sheer power. For the second time this evening, he was blasted back, crashing through most of his own mansion. While this minor altercation was going on, Erica had grabbed Lilliana's hand, Godou picked up Mariya, and with Christina, they tried to escape through one of the broken windows. Erica, as well as Godou and Mariya, made it through safely. However, before Lilliana and Christina could follow, a bolt of lightning crashed down and blocked their exit. Heretic Thor's rage was almost tangible now, one could see his face getting redder and redder as he shouted incoherently into his own storm.

"Thou shalt ANSWER!" He roared, summoning another blast of lightning that arced down, aimed directly at Lilliana's chest. Lilliana knew that she wouldn't survive. Heretic Thor had far too much power. As she waited for death to claim her, her mind turned to Ladron. _I wish I had the chance to say goodbye..._ she mourned, before a blinding flash of light and heat engulfed her.

The entire world was sideways and tinged with red. Small fires were burning here and there, the flames drifting as gusts of wind caught them. Lilliana felt herself being rolled over, her view changing from the ground to the sky. A long-haired figure clad in white was kneeling over her. _An angel... _Lilliana thought, not hearing the words that the figure was saying. _An angel come to bring to heaven..._ However, as Lilliana's brain adjusted, she began to doubt herself. If she was dead, then why were her senses not functioning perfectly? Why could she feel as though she had just been burned? If the figure was an angel, then why did it appear as if its body was fragmented, being held together by stretches of rainbowish light? As she watched, the rainbow light faded, as did the appearance of an angelic girl. In her place was a figure clad in black, raven colored hair spilling over his shoulders. His face was covered by a black cloth, his eyes hidden in shadow. Lilliana suddered inwardly. Had Death himself come to claim her soul? The figure ripped the black cloth off his his face, reveaaling rather plain features, none of which were skeletal or even overly pale. His mouth was moving, but she couldn't hear what he was saying. Only now did she notice that there was a horrible ringing in her ears. He looked...familiar. She felt weak, too weak to move or heal herself. Still, she strained her ears, trying to hear him.

"...ly!" She caught the last syllable of a word. What was he trying to say? Lilliana focussed through the ringing and managed to catch his next words. "Lily! Answer me!" He was definitely familiar... If only she could speak, move, respond in some way, she might learn what was going on and what had happened to her. She couldn't even shift her eyes.

"Dammit Lily!" his voice was breaking, pleading. "Wake up...WAKE UP!" he had risen to a hoarse shout. She felt his arms cradling her, holding her back off the ground. He looked at her, a few tears fell onto her cheek. Lilliana desperately wanted to respond, to let this figure that she seemed to know know that she could hear him. "Lily?..." His voice was quiet now. He lowered his head, planting a kiss on her forehead. She felt him lower her gently back to the ground. He dried his sapphire eyes and they grew icy, filled with a cold anger that would not be appeased. He slowly rose, lifting his eyes to look at someone Lilliana could not see.

"Thor," he said through clenched teeth, stretching one hand out to the side. "words cannot express the pain that I will put you through. By the end of our duel, your divinity will be so battered and broken that you will never remanifest, even in the divine realm!" As he finished his declaration, a dark aura engulfed his hand. Continuing to seethe, his face a perfect mask of hatred, the figure caused the aura to elongate and solidify. In his hand, he now held a wooden spear that glowed with the same dark aura.

"Hear me, allfather Odin" he continued, bringing the spear up and leveling it at something in the sky, presumably Thor. "Beginning with your son Thor, I will grind your children out of existence. I will murder them one by one, I will burn Asgard to the ground! I will cast down your throne of Hlidskjalf and tear you limb from limb, casting your remains into Muspelheim to burn for eternity! All this I swear on my lineage as a son of Loki!" As he finished speaking, Lilliana's vision grew hazy. She could feel something pulling at her, gently but insistently. Yielding to the call, Lilliana felt herself slip away...

Author's Note:

Hey guys! So yeah, this chapter went by kinda fast, but this is only the beginning of the action. As Ladron promised, he's going to start a one man war on Asgard. Also, though I hate cliffhangers myself, I couldn't resist leaving you guys the question of Lily's survival. I have no idea of whether or not my posts would be considered rapid or slow, but as school gets back in session, I can guarantee that I will slow down. However, the only thing that will kill this story is the death of my imagination, and that is _very _unlikely. Also, to anyone who wishes to do so, you can PM me or drop a review with OC ideas. I'm open to anything, from knights to witches/miko, from ordinary civilians to new campione and demigods! The more details the better. I can't guarantee that your ideas will be used, but they will be appreciated. Seriously, this alternate universe that I'm creating needs new people to populate it. Best of luck in the New Year guys :)


	7. Rebirth

**Ch 7 Rebirth**

When Lilliana's vision returned, she was in a very different place. The first thing she noticed was the grey sky. It was flat, dull, devoid of expression, without clouds or even a sun. As she looked around, a landscape slowly revealed itself before her eyes. It was grey and brown, lifeless. A hilly, arid wasteland. As soon as she became fully aware of its appearance, she suddenly felt tremors beneath her feet. The land shook violently, and she nearly fell down.

"Well, well, who could you be?" A cold voice said from behind her. Lilliana spun around. The man who addressed her was tall, with long black hair and icy blue eyes. He was clothed in flowing robes that seemed to have no distinct color. If one ignored the arrogance in his in his demeanor, it would almost be like looking at Ladron's older brother. When he saw Lilliana's face, recognition dawned on his. "Ah, you must be Lilliana." he said, the cold arrogance slipping away and a smile crossed his face. "Please, forgive my manners. I am Loki, or at least, the part the Ladron inherited. Come, there's something I want to show you." Beckoning with his hand, he turned and walked off. Curious but confused, Lilliana followed.

Travelling in this unknown realm was decidedly different from anything Lilliana had yet experienced. When she started walking, it was as if massive distances flew by in seconds. The landscape blurred and shifted around her. If were not for Loki beside her, she would have rapidly become lost.

When they finally stopped moving, it was as if they had stepped into a different world. They were surrounded by a ring of trees, and stood upon flourishing green grass. The afternoon sun shone in a brilliantly blue sky. Lilliana gazed around in wonder. Loki watched her reaction with a smile.

"It's a beautiful place, no?" he asked, his voice gentle. Lilliana nodded, still drinking in the view.

"How does a place like this exist in such a grey world?" she asked, her voice quiet.

"This grey world as a whole is a manifestation of Ladron's soul. Everything in it is a representation of something in his life." Loki explained. He waved his hand in the vague direction of the grey wasteland. "As you can see, it's mostly barren and grey. He lived for sixteen years without friends, family, or any form of comfort. He was forced to fend for himself against a god for the last six of those years. With such a harsh past, it only makes sense that his soul would be an equally harsh environment. But..." here Loki raised a finger. "All of that changed several months ago. Can you guess why?" Lilliana nodded again.

"He was accepted by the Bronze and Copper Black Crosses. He finally found a surrogate family." Lilliana offered. Loki smiled, his eyes beginning to twinkle.

"Close" he congratulated. "Very, very close. But you forget that though he was accepted, Nick and Lauren weren't exactly his best friends. I was referring to the beginning of his friendship with you." Lilliana started, not expecting this response. "Think about it" Loki said, "He never had a family, never had friends. Then along comes little miss 'Beauty of the Moon,' the first person to show some care for him. You became his first and only friend while he trained with Nick and Lauren, and later you took up the mantle of training him yourself. You two performed admirably in the field together, guarding each other's backs. After all of this, he's grown quite attached to you. He'll never admit it, but he is." Lilliana felt a light blush come to her cheeks.

_So he does care..._ she mused, the thought made her feel warm and inside. She felt somehow relieved at this revelation, though she quickly covered that feeling up. Loki's face slowly lost its smile.

"But, this grove is dying" he said, his voice melancholy. Even as he spoke, more tremors shook the ground. He gestured at the edges of the trees. Lillina looked closer and saw that there was indeed a dark rot setting in, slowly killing the trees and darkening the grass and sky. "You cannot see through Ladron's eyes as I can, but he is running off of pure hate right now." Loki continued, his voice growing serious. "Hate is a powerful weapon, capable of destroying even that which is invincible. But it also corrupts the heart and twists the mind, leading even the greatest of men down an irreversible path of darkness." His dead eyes grew solemn. "Believe me, I've been there. If Ladron continues down this path, he will surely butcher Asgard, not that I care. But the price will be the desolation of this grove. For me, that means living in a grey world without any reprieve, not that you care about that. But for you, the price will be knowing that your death created the most destructive monster this world has seen in an age." Lilliana's face grew pale, and she shook her head.

"No, that's not right!" Lilliana exclaimed. "He might care, but surely he doesn't caare that much?!" Loki looked at her solemnly.

"What did I just say?" he asked rhetorically. "You are the first human being to show an interest in being his friend because _you accept him for who he is._ Over the past months, you've become his best and only friend, every female relative he never had, the one person who would care if he went missing or cry if he were dead. And now, to the best of his knowledge, _you are dead!_ How do you think he should be responding?" Lilliana couldn't respond, there were simply no words to say. Finally, she looked around again at the trees.

"Then there's nothing to be done?" She asked, watching the dark rot continue to eat away at the once idyllic grove. Loki shook his head.

"No, there is one thing. See my eyes? They're flat, dead, without energy. They lack life." Loki said, pulling back his hair and leaning over so Lilliana could have a better view. "But yours, they still have some life in them. You aren't yet fully dead. Your body is probably holding on by a thread, and your soul attached itself to the nearest living being so as not to overburden it." Lilliana looked up, a glimmer of hope in her eyes. "So all that remains is to heal your body." Loki concluded, drawing back one of his sleeves.

"What are you doing?" Lilliana asked, not really knowing how Loki proposed to help her.

"It's simple. Even though I am merely a soul, I am the source of Ladron's authorities. Since you're here, I can temporarily offer you the benefits of my giant's blood." So saying, he used one of his fingernails to open a vein on his forearm. A small stream of blood seeped out, running down his arm and gathering into a small sphere above his palm. "Care for a drink?" Loki said, a hint of humor in his voice. Lilliana pushed back her distaste and stepped forward. Taking the sphere in her hands, she sipped it. The blood tasted horrible, and she nearly threw up several times before she had drunk it all. Immediately she felt as if her entire body had been submerged in an ice bath, and the world around her grew dim. Loki looked on with a small smile.

"Go beat some sense into my wayward son." He said, his voice growing distant as Lilliana slipped away. "Hel knows he needs some..."

Lilliana felt the cold hard earth ram into her back. She opened her eyes to the night sky, gleaming with stars. Her body no longer hurt, but she had little time to reflect on that. She could hear battle cries and crashing thunder behind her. Getting her hands underneath her, Lilliana shoved herself back to her feet. She felt slightly dizzy, but she forced herself to move. Looking behind her, she saw the crater that was all that remained of the ballroom. At the bottom, Ladron was beating furiously at a shield of lightning summoned Heretic Thor. He was screaming incoherently, his sapphire eyes wild. He was covered in a hundred minor wounds, and his blood had already stained his black attire. Heretic Thor was kneeling, holding Mjolnir up with both hands in a desperate effort to maintain his shield. Even as Lilliana ran stumbling towards them, the lightning broke, and Heretic Thor was hurled onto his back. Ladron slowly walked towards his prone enemy, flipping the cursed spear of mistletoe end for end. Planting a knee on Heretic Thor's chest, Ladron rammed the spear through Thor's thigh.

"Your death," he growled as Heretic Thor screamed. "Is the beginning of the end for Asgard!" Ladron ripped the spear from Heretic Thor's leg, and hefted it in both hands. Lilliana knew that she didn't have time to stop Ladron with words. Instead, she threw herself forwards in a full body tackle, hurling Ladron off of Heretic Thor. Landing on top, Lilliana desperately tried to knock the spear from Ladron's grasp.

"Snap out of it!" she yelled, managing to pin Ladron beneath her knees. With bloodshot eyes, Ladron gazed up at her and growled. Reaching up with his free hand, he balled his fingers into a fist and punched Lilliana in the kidney. As pain exploded in her side, the world tilted around Lilliana as she crashed to the ground. Gasping, she tried to force herself to her hands and knees. She saw Ladron flip himself upright, and walk towards the still recovering Heretic Thor.

_Hate is a powerful weapon, capable of destroying even that which is invincible. But it also corrupts the heart and twists the mind, leading even the greatest of men down an irreversible path of darkness..._ Loki's words echoed through Lilliana's mind, leading to a flash of inspiration. Lilliana scrambled forward, and launched herself at Ladron, clinging to his back.

"Listen to me!" she begged, locking her arms around Ladron's waist and leaning her chin on his shoulder. "You have to listen!"

"You're just another voice in my mind" Ladron said, standing tall. "They're always there, whispering to me, telling me what my inhuman eyes can see..."

"I'm not just another voice!" Lilliana asserted. "Just turn your head and look at me!" Ladron shook his head.

"There's no need." He said. "From your voice, there'd just be an apparition of Lily. Now if you don't mind, I have a god to kill." Ladron raised the cursed spear, holding it above Heretic Thor's chest.

"If you kill him, you'll forever lose yourself in hate!" Lilliana screamed, loosing one hand to grasp Ladron's raised arm. "You'll become a hollow shell of yourself, a wrech so twisted, that he thinks that he can label mass murder as 'justice' because his only friend was killed!" As Lilliana paused for breath, she could feel Ladron's arm shaking a little.

"Shut up..." He muttered, his teeth clenched. "Avenging her death with blood _is_ justice!"

"Your actions would dishonor her memory!" Lilliana continued. "You would butcher all of Asgard, for injuries inflicted by only two gods?" Lilliana's voice began to break. "If you can justify that, I won't stop you. You'll have already become the monster Lilliana foresaw." Ladron's arm shook even more as he gazed down on Heretic Thor, who had very nearly recovered by this point.

"Who are you?" Ladron asked quietly, turning his head a little. Lilliana could see that his eyes were bloodshot not from rage, but because he was crying.

"Someone who doesn't want you to throw your life away." Lilliana replied, letting go of Ladron's arm. He turned around and looked at her.

"You look exactly like her..." he said, the anger gone from his voice. "Who are you, really?" Lilliana smiled and put her hands on Ladron's shoulders.

"Someone who owes you their life." she said. "And someone you care about." Pulling Ladron towards her, Lilliana embraced him. Ladron wrapped his free arm around her shoulders as well, the realization of what had happened slowly dawning on his face.

"H-How did you..." his voice brokenly trailed off. Lilliana looked into his eyes and smiled.

"Long story" she offered, "Just promise me that you won't go crazy like this again. Please?" Ladron smiled through his tears.

"Of course" he said, leaning in a little closer.

"Alright, you two can have a mushy tryst later!" Erica's voice rudely interrupted. "Right now, we have bigger problems!" By this time, Heretic Thor was back on his feet, Mjolnir raised in both hands. As a tempest of power swirled around him, Heretic Thor glared at Ladron.

"Both the hunter and the hunted shall perish, Lokison!" He roared, lightning arcing around him. "All shall yield before the might of the storm!" Godou, Erica, and Mariya leapt down next to Lilliana and Ladron. Raising his hand, Godou chanted spell words.

"O lightning! O lightning! I am the conqueror who vanquished a thousand with a hundred, vanquished ten thousand with a thousand, and vanquished tens of thousands with ten thousand. Now for the sake of I who stand on the side of justice, release bright and shining brilliance, and grant me divine power!" Drawing on the energy of Erica and Mariya, Godou used the Goat incarnation to counter Heretic Thor's lightning. The Heretic God of thunder howled, infusing his rage into the storm. Tired already, Erica and Mariya lacked enough energy to sustain Godou, and collapsed. Sweating, Godou's command over the lightning began to slip.

"Finish...him..." Godou gasped, falling to one knee as he desperately fought to keep the lightning at bay. Ladron nodded. He would Heretic Thor not out of vengeance, but out of a desire to protect. Grasping the cursed Spear of Mistletoe in both hands, Ladron charged.

Lilliana watched as Ladron rushed forward. She saw the spear rise and fall. She heard Heretic Thor roar in pain as the spear pierced his chest. There was a blinding explosion of light, followed by a deafening clap of thunder. She felt the shockwave of heat pushing her back. When her senses returned to her, Lilliana saw Ladron standing. His clothes were torn, his skin scorched and burned. Embers smoldered in his hair. Hefting the spear above his head, Ladron let out a cry of victory. For a few precious seconds, he truly looked the part of the victorious hero. Then the spear faded, his knees buckled, and Ladron fell to the ground.

A world of infinite white surrounded Ladron. There was no sky and no ground, just white. After a few moments, he realized that he was lying down on some hard surface. Rolling onto his stomach, he pushed himself onto his knees. Looking around, he saw that the world was still purely, unvaryingly white.

"What the Hel is this?" Ladron muttered, mentally reviewing the events that led up to his awakening here.

"This is the Netherworld." A cute, young sounding voice said. "Or as the Europeans prefer to call it, the Astral Plane." Ladron spun around, looking for the speaker. She was a young girl in a white dress with violet hair split into two tails on either side of her head. Seeing Ladron's confused expression, she smiled. "I guess I should intoduce myself. I'm Pandora. Like you, I'm also a demigod."

"You're also the adoptive mother of all campione." Ladron inserted, his voice level and calm. "I may have killed a god, but that doesn't mean that I need to become a monster like Voban." Pandora smiled, clapping her hands.

"And that's exactly why you're here!" her voice was cheery to the point of being obnoxious. "All campione are born because they _weren't_ looking to obtain massive power. Usually they're colossal fools, and end up in pointless conflicts. But you and Kusanagi-san don't go looking for trouble, it just happens to find you." Ladron frowned.

"You're speaking as if all of this was perfectly obvious. How exactly does not wanting to have power qualify me for being a campione?" he asked, confused.

"It keeps the worst of the worst from becoming campione on a whim." Pandora shrugged. "And as for why I allowed you to become one..." her voice grew high pitched again. "I just wanted to have fun! It's been so long since I've seen a fellow demigod!"

"Whatever..." Ladron shrugged. He really didn't understand this person at all. "Can you send me back now? I've got a friend who's probably pretty worried."

"Of course." Pandora smiled. "But first, call me 'mama,' ok? I am the adoptive parent of all the campione, but none of them ever show their affection..." her voice trailed off into a pout. Ladron grinned. He didn't know why, but he liked Pandora enough to humor her. Plus, he knew what it was like to never have a real family.

"Alright, _Mama_." Ladron said, patting Pandora's head and touseling her hair. "Can you _please_ send me back?" Pandora looked up, a little startled, then smiled.

"Sure!" she said, "Oh, and you won't remember that this conversation took place, that's part of my authority, but thanks for showing some affection!" Ladron grinned and waved as the entire world faded from white to black.

"Hey! You alright in there?" A girl's voice was callling to him. "Hey, Ladron!" He felt his shoulders being shaken. He grunted and forced his eyes open. Lilliana was bending over him, an expression of concern on her face. "What happened?"

"Not sure" Ladron mumbled, vaguely remembering a world of pure white. "Anyway, are you alright?"

"I'm fine" Lilliana said, "But you're not." Ladron shook his head.

"I'll be fine" he asserted, slowly pushing himself to his hands and knees. Over Lilliana's shoulder, he could see Godou making Erica and Mariya as comfortable as he could while they slept off their exhaustion. Straigntening up, Ladron stretched. Despite the fact that he had just fought a heretic god, he didn't feel as though he should be in the hospital. Instead, he felt great, as if all his wounds had been magically healed. _Now why would that be..._ he wondered.

After an hour or two had passed with everyone resting, Lilliana, Godou, and Ladron came to the agreement that they should leave to seek assistance, since any and all mage organizations were probably ordered to keep their distance by Voban. Godou picked up the still unconscious Mariya in his arms. Following his example, Ladron shrugged and picked up Erica in a similar fashion. Behind Ladron's back, Lilliana's eyes narrowed. After a moment's thought, she sighed and let her knees buckle, falling with an audible thud. Looking back, one glance told Ladron that she was probably faking it. Emotionlessly, he slung Erica over Godou's shoulders (overriding Godou's complaints) and picked up Lilliana. His guess was proven when she snuggled closer and buried her head in his chest.

A nighttime walk of a few minutes brought the group to the small town they had arrived in. Having been prepared ahead of time, Ladron led them to the motel where he had booked a room. Though they had managed to avoid most pedestrians due to the late hour, the one motel employee that was still awake gave the boys an odd look. Ladron shurgged it off easily, but Godou became a little flustered. Unlocking the door, Ladron deposited Lilliana, who had fallen asleep, on the bed. Godou followed suit, but then had to deal with Erica, who woke up and began demanding that they upgrade their room. Ignoring their minor argument, Ladron picked up the room's phone and dialed the number that he had previously memorized. After a few rings, the call connected.

"I assume you have your report?" Nick's voice came pleasantly over the phone.

"What are you doing up at this hour?" Ladron asked, surprised. "And why are you on this line?"

"I got selected to watch the phone for this time slot" Nick explained. "Now, what's the situation?" Ladron told him. "Well, don't worry about it." Nick said after a minute of thought. "I'll make arrangements for the Bronze Black Cross too pick you up tomorrow morning." Ladron thanked him and hung up.

"Alright guys." Ladron announced, "The Bronze Black Cross will pick us up in two groups tomorrow morning. Until then, sleep well." Witthout waiting for a reply, he curled up in a corner and fell asleep.

In the morning, the room was slightly chaotic. Ladron opened his eyes to the sight of pillows thrown everywhere, the chairs and table overturned, and the bedsheets littered the floor. Godou and Mariya were nowhere to be seen. Erica and Lilliana however, were facing off with swords drawn. Erica looked calm and composed, even in her ruffled attire, while Lilliana's crimson face was framed by her disheveled white hair. _Apparently her ponytail came undone..._ Ladron idly thought through a haze of sleep. A second later, he snapped awake. The two trained knights were facing off with swords in a trashed motel room. _Why didn't I wake up earlier?!_ Ladron wondered, flipping himself to his feet. The two knights were clearly arguing.

"It's perfectly obvious, Lily" Erica said, her voice elegant. "You can't deny it" Lilliana was too flustered to make a coherent reply. Instead, she made the first move, swinging Il Maestro in a short arc, aiming for Erica's arm. Though Erica reacted with a splendid parry, Ladron had already stepped between the two of them and grasped their wrists.

"I don't know what you're arguing about, nor do I care..." Ladron began, his voice low, "But can't you guys do it somewhere where we don't have to _pay_ to clean up the mess?" Lilliana looked down, a touch of shame in her eyes. Erica straightened, letting out a little laugh.

"And the maiden gets rescued by the brave hero, an ending quite fitting for your novels, eh Lily?" Erica said, dispelling Cuore de Lione. Lilliana's blush somehow extended to the roots of her hair, even as she also dispelled her sword. Ladron sighed.

"You're fighting over the exact relationship that Lilliana and I share?" he asked, equally amused and surprised. Erica nodded.

"She claims that neither of you have those kind of feelings, but it's obvious tha..." her voice trailed off as she saw Ladron's look darken.

"Ok then, if she says that our relationship isn't as progressed as yours with Godou is, then that's that." Ladron asserted, letting the two girls go. "Now let's get something to eat before the cars arrive."

The three caught up with Godou and Mariya at a nearby restaurant, and all shared a relatively decent meal. After leaving the tip, they went back to the motel room and managed to repair the worst of the damage. When the limousines came, one chauffer took Godou, Erica, and Mariya to the airport to catch a chartered flight back to Japan. The other drove Lilliana and Ladron back to the Bronze Black Cross in Milan. During the drive, Lilliana had ample oppportunity to ask questions.

"What was your real assignment?"

"A multiple day field test of this suit" Ladron replied, gesturing at his torn outfit. "Given the relatively little damage it took from Heretic Thor, I'd say it passes with flying colors."

"But aren't all field tests done in specific areas?" Lilliana asked.

"Normally, yes" Ladron said, leaning back in his seat. "But this time, they told me 'stress test this wherever you want.' Seeing as I was given complete freedom, I decided to tag along on your trip to the grand ball." Lilliana opened her mouth to argue that he had been unnecessary and that he shouldn't have put himself in harm's way, but shut it again when she realized that would be blatantly untrue. Instead, she changed the topic.

"And what did the outfit look like before all of the damage?" she asked.

"It wouldn't have won any fashion shows." Ladron shrugged. "It was pure black, tight enough to be a second skin, yet flexible enough to not hamper movement." He held up his hands. "There used to be fingerless gloves, but those got burned off pretty quickly once lightning started flying around. The boots have steel toes and a flexible steel sheet along the sole. The face mask was just a touch I added." Lilliana nodded as he went on to explain the various materials that had gone into its creation, as well as the enchantments that had been used to enhance their natural properties. She wasn't really listening, but she did enjoy just sitting and sharing a quiet moment with Ladron. Finally, she spoke up again.

"Thanks for the save back there." she said quietly.

"You mean with Erica?" Ladron asked, his mind instantly switching gears. "It was nothing. All I did was stop a fight."

"So, you told the truth then?" Lilliana asked, an odd note creeping into her voice. Ladron frowned in confusion.

"I don't follow. Told the truth about what?"

"Erica made it obvious that she thinks that I have f-f-feelings for you..." Lilliana trailed off as she fought down a blush. Ladron nodded.

"Well congratulations." he said, with an absolutely straight face. "You have a crush." Lilliana finally blushed.

"A-A-Alright then..." she said, trying to fully recover the use of her voice. "What about you?"

"What about me?" Ladron deliberately asked.

"Do you...do you...doyoualsohavefeelingsforme?" Lilliana asked very quickly, involuntarily shutting her eyes. She already knew that he was attached to her, but she wanted to know the depths of that attachment. Ladron took a while to answer.

"Good question" he responded, his voice neutral. Lilliana opened her eyes. Ladron was sitting forward, resting his elbows on his knees and his chin on his hands.

"If I say no," he continued, "I would severely embarass and potentially insult you. Though I don't exactly fear retribution, it would be awkward having that between us..." His eyes narrowed as he continued to think. "However, saying yes and not truly meaning it would merely postpone and worsen any problems that might arrive..." He sighed. "Is 'I don't know' a valid answer?" he asked. Even as Lilliana slowly nodded, her eyes downcast, Ladron heard a familiar voice in his mind.

_You could just tell her the truth, you know._ Loki told him.

_And what is the truth, my lying father?_ Ladron asked with extreme sarcasm.

_That what you said earlier was true._ Loki replied. _That while you do have some feelings for her, your relationship is not at the point where you feel comfortable openly displaying them._ Ladron thought this over for a minute, and finally thanked the fragment of his dad that lived within him.

"Well..." Ladron said, breaking the awkward silence that had descended on the car. "Maybe 'I don't know' isn't the best answer..." Lilliana immediately perked up a little. "I do have an attachment to you, in that I don't want to see you die, or lose a duel, or..." His attempt was rapidly going down the drain. Ladron tried again. "What I'm trying to say is, well..." Ladron trailed off. "Why do I trip over my tongue _now?_ It's always been so easy to talk to you before..." Ladron muttered, scowling. Contrary to Ladron steadily worsening mood, Lilliana was smiling gently.

"Maybe I can help?" she offered, shifting herself next to Ladron and putting a hand between his shoulder blades. His muscles were very tense, so she slowly rubbed his back. "You feel like you can't talk to me about your feelings, right?" Ladron nodded, relaxing a little. "Then it becomes very simple question." Lilliana continued, shifting her handds to Ladron's shoulders and turning him to face her. "Do you care about me?"

"Huh?" Ladron asked, not fully understanding.

"Do you care about me?" Lilliana repeated. "Do you want to stay with me, be closer friends, have us share in our achievements and sorrows?" Ladron slowly nodded, he agreed with everything Lilliana had just said. "That's all you needed to say." Lilliana smiled, snuggling in closer. After an initial moment of uncertainty, Ladron mirrored her smile and awkwardly touseled her hair, gently wrapping his free arm around her shoulders. He felt a little warm and fuzzy on the inside. For some reason, he rather protective of Lilliana

"I've barely slept in three days..." Ladron murmured, hating to break the moment but not wanting to simply collapse without explanation. Lilliana nodded.

"It's alright" she replied. "After what we've been through, I'd say we both deserve a rest..." The rest of the trip was spent relaxing in each other's arms.

Author's Notes:

Hey guys! I'm sorry this chapter took awhile, but I've been in study mode for the past week prepping for midterms. Hopefully I'll be more productive soon. In any case, have a great day:)


	8. Everything Changes

**Chapter 8 Everything Changes**

"Well done you two!" an overly cheery and slightly demonic voice greeted the still sleepy Lilliana and Ladron. Ladron stirred sleepily, acknowledging Karen with a lazy wave of his hand as he slowly straightened up.

_Why is Lilliana so worked up... _Ladron idly wondered, stretching while he watched Lilliana berate the utterly calm Karen. Ladron yawned, still not fully awake._ I really spent too much time without sleep..._ Ladron thought, fighting to break the haze in his mind. Shrugging, he walked into the Mansion to return the experiemental suit and file his report.

Wandering through the halls, Ladron finally found his way back to the briefing rooms. After taking a moment to change back into his usual jeans, tshirt, and hoodie, he sat down at a desk and clicked on the desktop computer. After flipping through a series of screens, he finally opened the program he wanted, and filled in the required fields. Without even thinking, he mentioned that Heretic Thor had been killed. Sending the report, Ladron exited out of the programs and turned the computer off. He walked out of the briefing room and returned the suit to the R&D man who had given it to him. Though the man clicked his tongue over the apparent damage, he seemed more interested in it than disappointed.

His job done, Ladron walked up the three flights of stairs to the room he and Lilliana shared. Opening the door, he was greeted with the unusual sight of Karen not doing work. In fact, she was sitting down at the small circular table with two books in front of her. One was bound in leather, with words written in a firm, flowing hand across the pages. The other looked like a cheap eighty page notebook. Holding her hand above this second notebook, Karen was using magic to rapidly copy the contents of the first. Ladron shrugged, not really caring. Stepping into the room, Ladron shut the door behind him and grabbed a pillow off of the couch. Ignoring Karen's startled greeting, he threw the pillow down in his usual corner and fell on top of it, falling deeply asleep in seconds.

The grey wasteland surrounded Ladron again. Feeling very awake and alive, Ladron rose and looked around at his inner world. Not much had changed, the hills were still hills, the sky was still grey, and everything was still barren. Ladron sighed, feeling a concentration of energy beginning tto manifest behind him.

"Loki, why am I..." Ladron began, before being thrown off balance by a shockwave of power. Staggering, Ladron whirled around. Instead of Loki, the man who stood before him looked like Heretic Thor, just without his usual battle armor or Mjolnir. His rage, however, seemed undiminished. Spreading his arms, he charged, attempting to grab Ladron. Dodging nimbly to the side, Ladron dropped into a sweepping kick, knocking the charging figure to the ground. Without thinking, Ladron leapt onto Thor's back, and wrapped his arm around his neck in a reverse chokehold. Pulling up and back with all his strength, Ladron strangled the figure of Thor into submission. Letting the limp body fall to the ground, Ladron scrambled backwards. Finally getting back to his feet, he stared at Thor.

"Why the Hel are you here?" he asked to no one in particular.

"Because he is the manifestation of the powers you stand to gain from defeating Heretic Thor" Loki's voice responded, a flock of ravens descending and coalescing into Ladron's father. When Ladron still confused, Loki continued to explain. "Usually, godslayers usurp a single authority from each god they kill. However, you seem to be a little different. When you kill gods, you seem to absorb not only an authority, but also part of their soul, giving them a physical manifestation in this world." Ladron slowly nodded, the concept seemed somewhat reasonable. "From these souls, you seem to be capable of drawing multiple authorities. I mean, look at all the authorities you gained from me." Ladron continued to nod, staring at the slowly recovering Thor.

"So, do I get his powers now?" Ladron asked. Loki looked critically at Thor, who was rising to his feet, rubbing his throat.

"I don't know." he responded. "You seem to be unique among the godslayers, so I guess that anything could be considered 'normal." Thor groaned, and staggerinngly turned around. Seeing Ladron, he bellowed and again made a mad rush, which Ladron again dodged.

"Thor...Thor..." Ladron muttered, trying to remember everything he had learned. He had managed to beat his father into submission because Loki was a selfish coward at heart. Perhaps he had to defeat Thor along the same lines? _Thor was the Norse god of thunder, possesed the warhammer Mjolnir, giving him power over the tempest..._ Ladron began running through his knowledge as he continued to dodge around Thor's slow but powerful blows and charges. _He was one of the most respected gods, since he was a known partier, an excellent hunter, and skilled wrestler..._ Ladron winced as he rolled between Thor's legs. _I guess there's nothing left but to do it..._ he thought, resigning himself to a wrestling match.

Understanding how he would need to proceed, Ladron faced off with Thor. Though Thor had been the one exerting more energy, he barely seemed tired. It looked like this would be a difficult matchup, since Ladron had never been excellent at hand to hand combat. Thor made the first move, rushing in with a wild haymaker. Slipping under Thor's outstretched arm, Ladron spun around as he let Thor pass him, lashing out at his kidneys. His kick was poorly aimed, but it did connect solidly with Thor's hip. The two faced off again.

This time, Thor moved in with both arms stretched wide, and grabbed Ladron in a bear hug. Unable to break free, Ladron was helplessly hoisted into the air and hurled brutally back down. As his back collided with the earth, Ladron shouted in pain, then gasped for air as Thor smashed his foot down on his chest. Unable to really move, Ladron reached up and hammered the side of Thor's knee. As the joint buckled, Ladron wiggled out from under the crushing weight and rolled back to his feet, facing off with Thor for a third time.

Thor again came in, more cautious now, keeping his arms up and close in. Ladron stood his ground as he sank into a half crouch, also raising his arms. The two traded blows for a a few seconds, before Ladron again slipped around behind Thor. Leaping onto Thor's back, Ladron wrapped and arm around his neck and struck at the back of Thor's head. Roaring, Thor tried to shake Ladron off of his back. Ladron left off attacking to grip Thor's neck more tightly with both arms. Swinging his legs around Thor's torso, Ladron attempted to get an even better grip. Fortunately, one off his heels struck Thor in the celiac (solar) plexus, causing Thor to double over.

Flipping himself over Thor's shoulders, Ladron landed in front of the winded Thor. Locking his hands behind Thor's head, Ladron proceeded to knee Thor in the chest, face, and neck. It may not have been very honorable, but Ladron just wanted the fight to be over. If Thor had the chance, his superior strength would break Ladron like a twig. As Ladron kept striking with his knees, he felt something shatter, and with his next blow he let go of Thor's head. Falling down on his side, Thor clutched his broken and bloodied face.

As he watched the defeated fragment of Thor's soul grovel in defeat, Ladron felt somehow alive, as if energy were flooding through his entire being. Feeling a tingling in his palms, Ladron looked down. Lightning was playing around his hands, snapping and crackling over his palms and dancing around his fingers.

"I guess this means I won..." Ladron muttered, shaking his hands until the lightning dissipated. Loki nodded, walking over to Thor and stomp kicking his groin.

"I always wanted to do that." Loki said, sounding satisfied as Thor moaned and rolled around a bit. Ladron rolled his eyes.

"If we're done here, I'll be going now..." Loki nodded, and Ladron closed his eyes, lettinghis mind slip from his inner world and back to reality.

_Beep...Beep...Beep..._ An annoying, high pitched heart moniter continued to sound, dutifully recording each of Ladron's heartbeats. Groaning in annoyance, Ladron reached for his chest to rip the sticky pads off, but stopped when he remembered that that would cause the even more annoying flatline tone. Sighing, Ladron let his hands fall. Though one hit the hospital bed and bounced a little, the other landed solidly on a slightly curved surface. With his eyes still closed, Ladron rubbed his hand over the surface, feeling hair slidling a little beneath his fingers.

Forcing his eyes open, Ladron lifted his head a little and looked down. His hand was resting on top of Lilliana's head, which was in turn resting on the side of his bed. One of her arms was curved under her cheek, the other was slightly outstretched, as if she had been hugging or stroking Ladron before she fell asleep. Ladron smiled a little, laying his head back. As he unconsciously continued to stroke Lilliana's hair, he was was suddenly hit by a fairly obvious question. _What the Hel am I doing in a hospital bed?_ Opening his eyes again, Ladron forced himself to sit up. Looking around, he saw that he was in the same white room that he had been in before. _So I'm in the Bronze Black Cross..._ he thought. Glancing at a clock, he saw that it was roughly 2AM. _That would explain why everything is really dark..._ Leaning back against the wall, Ladron couldn't really think of a way to pass the time.

_Beep...Beep...Beep..._ The heart moniter continued to sound, breaking the silence once every second or so. The endless beeping finally getting on his nerves, Ladron again reached for the pads. Ripping them off, he triggered the flatline tone. Sighing, he threw a pillow over the machine, which did muffle the sound quite a bit. Leaning back again, Ladron resumed stroking Lilliana's hair. He didn't know why, but performing the repetitive motion and feeling her hair slide under his hand was very relaxing. A few seconds later, the peaceful moment was shattered by two medics storming in, defibrillator in hand. They stopped short when they saw Ladron sitting up, his eyes open, his eyebrows raised.

"That didn't take long" he said, for some reason he felt like being a smartass. "What were you doing, sleeping outside my room?" The two medics were rather flustered. As they stammered random gibberish, Lilliana stirred. Sitting up, she rubbed her eyes and yawned a little.

"What's going on?" she asked sleepily. Looking at the two medics in confusion. Unable to form a coherent sentence, one of them simply pointed at Ladron. Suddenly realizing, Lilliana whipped her head around. She stared at the grinning Ladron.

"Anyone mind telling me what's going on?" Ladron asked casually. Lilliana abandoned her usual serious demeanor and threw her arms around Ladron's shoulders.

"You've been in a coma for about a week..." she said, her voice a mixture of concern and relief. "Everyone's been so worried..." Suddenly realizing her unprofessional manner, Lilliana pulled her arms back and blushed. "Forgive me, I forgot myself..."

"A week..." Ladron muttered, not hearing Lilliana's embarassed apology. "I didn't think that I was in my inner world that long..." The medics, not hearing his mumblings, had finally recovered.

"I'll go inform the Council!" one of them cried, running from the room. The other made to follow, but Ladron called after him.

"Why is the council interested? I'm just one man, and they have hundreds at their disposal." The medic turned around, looking very confused.

"H-How can you not know?!" the medic asked, an expression of extreme confusion on his face. "You survived killling a Heretic God!" Ladron shook his head.

"I'm still missing the point here..." he said, though he had a nagging suspicion that something had changed. Drastically.

"You're a campione, Ladron" Lilliana said, kneeling in a formal bow. "As a grand knight, I would like to offer my services as your sworn attendant." Ladron's eyes darted between the two of them. No dishonesty lay in either. He cast out with his thoughts, grasping at Loki's soul.

_Am I in truth a campione?_ he demanded.

_Indeed._ Loki replied. _Ever since you put my hotheaded half-brother in his place, you seem to have gained his authorities._ Ladron didn't really know how to deal with this news. With both the medic and Lilliana staring at him, Ladron felt like he had to say something.

"Um, I accept, I guess..." he said, turning to face Lilliana.

"Thank you, my lord." Lilliana said, hiding her smile of relief by bowing her head even further.

"By your leave, my lord." the medic said, bowing and leaving the room. Lilliana and Ladron awkwardly looked at each other.

"Well..." Ladron said, trying to fill the silence. "This was unexpected..." Lilliana nodded, sitting back down in the chair she had been in. Her back was ramrod straight, as if waiting at attention. "You can relax you know, I'm not going to bite your head off..." Ladron told her, needing a friend and realizing that his only one prrobably had a very different view of him by now.

Before Lilliana could answer, two knights in strode in, flanking a third, much better dressed man. He had a medium build, wore an expensive looking suit, and his face carried an expression of respect and awe. Seeing Ladron, he hurriedly fell to one knee, his knights following suit.

"My lord" he said, his raspy voice a little shaky. "I am Berislav Kranjcar, head of the Bronze Black Cross. Allow me to humbly offer the fullest extent of our services whille you recover." Ladron stared at him.

"Heh, well, until a week ago I was in your employ..." Ladron said. "This whole 'campione' thing is happening a little too fast..."

"Not to worry, not to worry!" Berislav said, sounding eager to please. "As a campione, you have access to our entire organization for any assistance that you require. Have offered you their service yet? If not, I can..."

"Lilliana did just a moment ago" Ladron said, cutting off Berislav midsentence. "And this is exactly what I'm talking about when I say 'too fast.' You're talking to a person who, until just a few minutes ago, was used to doing everything more or less on his own, depending on no one but himself. Now you're giving him titles, essentially infinite resources, and carte blanche to do whatever he wants so long as he kills Heretic Gods. Can't I just go back to being a common, obscure foot soldier?" Berislav, his knights, and Lillianna looked flabbergasted.

"W-With respect, my lord, it's impossible to reverse the process that turns a man into a campione" one of Berislav's knights spoke up. "I have studied magic my whole life, and that is the absolute truth. I apologize, my lord." Ladron sighed. Adaptability was a skill he had learned early on, but his current situation was still rather a lot to get used to.

"Thanks for your offer, Berislav. I'll try not to inconvenience you for too long." Ladron said, trying to start a reputation of being both casual and polite. He had no intention of turning out like Voban. Berislav and his escort rose and left the room, knowing themselves to be dismissed. Ladron looked around at Lilliana, sho still looked a little surprised.

"Well, how did I do?" he asked. Seeing Lilliana stare blankly at him, Ladron tried again. "How did I handle my first conversation as a campione?" Lilliana blinked a few times and managed to regain her usual serious expression.

"You did rather well in terms of content" she began, "But you sounded nowhere officious or commanding enough. People won't respect you as much if you don't live up to their preconceptions of how campione act." Ladron nodded, memorizing her advice.

"My lord," Lilliana continued, "Now seems like as good a time as any for me to clarify my duties to you."

"Agreed" Ladron interrupted. "Your first one can be to stop calling me 'my lord.' I have a very easy to remember name that you yourself gave me, and I vastly prefer it to any title." Lilliana shook her head.

"Between a campione and his retainers, there must be a certain level of respect" she explained.

"And between friends, there must be a certain level of familiarity" Ladron countered. "No one will blame you for calling me by my name." Lilliana bowed her head in acceptance.

"Very well then" she said, her voice unreadable. "As for my other duties, I can..." Lilliana went on for several minutes explaining how she was now Ladron's personal chef, maid, bodyguard, and master of his other servants (assuming he took more on). Ladron nodded the whole time, his heart sinking a little more with each sentence that came out of Lilliana's mouth. He felt as though a wall was coming up between them, a wall that threatened to take what small amout of friendship he had managed to build and tear it to pieces. The feeling was reinforced whenever he tried to mention that he was fully capable of taking care of himself, since Lilliana overrode his objections by declaring that a campione's status put him above doing common housework. When their conversation ended, Ladron politely thanked Lilliana and fell asleep.

When Ladron woke up the following morning, he managed to convince himself for a solid five seconds that everything that had happened the previous night was a dream. Reality hit him when he opened his eyes to find a massive breakfast laid out in front of him. There were fine crystal plates holding various dishes, and equally beautiful crystal pitchers holding milk, water, orange juice, etc. Ladron groaned, sitting up and leaning his face on his hands. _Why me..._ Ladron complained internally, feeling annoyed that he was being treated like royalty.

"Are you unwell, my lord?" Lilliana's voice asked. Immediately snapping out of his momentary reverie, Ladron dropped his hands and looked up.

"No, I'm fine. And I thought I asked you..." his voice trailed off when he saw Lilliana. She was wearing a maid's uniform similar to Karen's, and she held a freshly brewed pot of tea. "What is...how come...why?" Ladron stammered, his confusion rendeering him incapable of forming a coherent thought, much less sentence. Lilliana lookedd slightly embarrassed, but held her composure.

"As your personal servant, it is only natural that I would be wearing a servant's uniform" she stated, as if daring Ladron to ridicule her. Ladron sighed. From Lilliana's apparent embarrassment, this was obviously not her idea.

"Who put you up to this?" he asked, sounding rather resigned.

"E-Eh?!" Lilliana exclaimed, taken a little off guard.

"Who put you up to this?" Ladron repeated.

"N-No o-one..." she stammered, blushing and looking away. Ladron sighed again.

"If that's really true, then look me in the eye and say it in a calm voice" Ladron commanded. Lilliana looked up and tried to speak, but the words died in her throat. Ladron's eyes were gleaming a piercing blue, seeming to cut through any lies she could think of. After a few moments, she shut her mouth and looked away. Ladron nodded.

"I knew it wasn't your idea, it's far too bold." Ladron commented, the light in his eyes fading and his voice growing gentle. "Not that you can't handle yourself, but if you're having problems, you can count on my help." Lilliana started, her cheeks growing rosy.

"B-but..." she began, but Ladron cut her off.

"Look, I may be a campione now, but that doesn't mean that I'm the next Voban or Doni" he pleaded, trying to convey just how lost he felt. "I had just become comfortable with our comraderie, and then fate dealt me a few bad cards." Ladron bowed his head. "I don't want to lose your friendship..."

Lilliana stared at him, feeling rather conflicted. Every time she had interacted with campione in the past, they had been horrible people, true tyrants that cared not at all about the 'lesser' beings around them. She had been raised her whole life to give campione the utmost respect and deference. On the other hand, Ladron had been her friend for six months. They had shared victories and defeats, training, they even slept in the same room. Though they weren't exactly 'together,' their relationship did run deeper than the average friendship, and it was undeniable that she was the only girl that Ladron felt comfortable around. Wanting some time alone, she hurriedly left the room. Ladron sighed, hopeing that he hadn't just ruined any remaining chance of restoring their old relationship.

"You could've handled that better." a voice came from behind a curtain. Ladron looked around and saw Karen step out from behind the window curtains.

"How long have you been there?" Ladron asked, resigned to Karen's usual antics. She shrugged.

"Long enough. You were kind of hypocritical, you know." she commented.

"How so?" Ladron challenged, not really in the mood too take advice.

"You claim that you're not another Voban or Doni, but you used one of your authorities to intimidate Lilliana into telling the truth." Karen pointed out. Normally, Ladron would have nodded in agreement, but today he needed time to adjust and think. Without responding, he got out of bed and walked over to the window. Seeing his serious expression, Karen's face grew pale and she knelt, bowing her head.

"If I have said anything out of line..." she began, but Ladron simply brushed past her and unlatched the window. Throwing it wide open, he took a breath of fresh air.

"If anyone asks," he said without turning around, "I'm wandering the streets." Disassociating his body into a flock of ravens, Ladron flew off into the skies of Milan.

A few hours later, Ladron was sitting on a park bench, resting his head on his hands, lost in thought. He comtemplated his new position, how he would have to reevaluate his relationship with Lilliana, how his entire life was about to change. Most people would welcome the chance to live a life of total luxury and entertainment, their only job being the killing of Heretic Gods, who didn't manifest themselves that often. Ladron just wanted the comfort of obscurity, the freedom to do as he wished without being tracked or relying on or being relied on by anyone. However, he also wanted to keep his friendship with Lilliana, even though she seemed insistent on putting up a formal wall between them. As the hot midday sun beat down, Ladron's constant brooding began to give him a headache.

"Tough day?" an overly cheery voice asked. Ladron didn't respond, he had been overhearing private conversations all day. "Hey, you! Dude with the long black hair!" the voice continued, its cheer unabated. "I know you can hear me." Ladron looked up and saw another guy standing in front of him. He was about Ladron's height, had close cropped blond hair, and was wearing a tshirt and shorts with sandals. He had some sort of long, metallic case slung over his shoulder, and in his hands he held two bowls of gelato. His face was covered with a massive smile.

"That's better!" he said, thrusting one of the bowls at Ladron. "Eat! And we'll get to know each other!"

"Look," Ladron said, politely refusing the bowl. "I don't know who you are, so you probably have the wrong person."

"Nope, the description was very specific!" the man said, still pushing the bowl at Ladron. "They said you'd be the only guy wearing jeans and a sweatshirt in the middle of summer, and you're the only guy here who is!" Ladron sighed. This guy obviously had some sort of pull with the Bronze Black Cross, and he hadn't exactly made his location a secret.

"Alright, so maybe I am who you're looking for." Ladron admitted, finally taking the bowl and letting the man sit next to him. "But who are you?" The man perked up, which was weird, since he had already been pushing the bounds of natural happiness.

"Excellent!" he said through a massive smile. "I'm Lord Salvatore Doni, pleasure to meet you!" Ladron nearly choked on his first bite of gelato. Why had the Italian campione sought him out?

"And just to make sure, your name is Ladron, right?" Doni asked. Ladron nodded, focussed on clearing his airway. "Good!" Doni exclaimed, digging into his gelato with gusto. "When I learned that I might have a new brother, I canceled my trip to Brasil just to see if it was true. And now that you're here, it'll be so much fun!" Doni continued rambling on, his cheery mood only serving to worsen Ladron's mood.

"Anyway" Doni said after they had both finisheed their gelato. "Let's have a duel to mark the beginning of our friendship, eh?" Ladron knew full well that Doni's definition of a duel usually involveed going all out and severely disrupting civilian life.

"You mean right here, right now?" Ladron asked, seeing Doni unsling the case from his shoulder and begin to open it.

"Well, of course!" Doni replied. "I learned my lesson back when Godou refused to duel with me, so all I have to do is make sure you can't run away!" By this time, the sword was out of its case. Ladron sighed, weighing his options.

_I can help thee, young kinsman._ A deep and respectful voice spoke inside his mind. Curious, Ladron let him keep talking. _If thou wishest not to harm this youth, then paralyze him with my lightning. Being a fellow godslayer, he should survive even an all out surprise strike._ Ladron nodded, and put on a fake smile.

"Well, when you put it that way, I guess there's no getting out of it" Ladron said, standing up and offering his hand. "But can we agree to at least try to not destroy the environment?" When Doni looked a little confused, Ladron hurriedly added, "Think of it as a test of skill. Anyone can fight like a beserker, but for a truly powerful individual to display precision with his power is far more impressive than for him to display mindless destruction." Doni's confusion evaporated and joy rapidly infused his face.

"I knew we would get off to a great start!" he exclaimed, obviously thrilled by the idea of his opponent proposing a challenge to make their first duel even more impressive. Reaching out his hand, he heartily shook Ladron's. Smiling, Ladron clapped his other hand onto Doni's shoulder, then channeled Thor's lightning through his palms.

Doni's smile froze as tens of millions of volts of electricity ran through his system. Letting his own smile slip into a grimace of frustration, Ladron shifted his hand off of Doni's shoulder and onto the entire right side of Doni's face. Pouring his pent up frustration into his power, Ladron released a final jolt of lightning, letting go of Doni at the same time. The results were spectacular. Doni's entire body arched as his nervous system overloaded, sending him into a series of rapid spasms. While this was going on, he had been blown back several dozens of meters by the sheer force that Ladron had poured into his attack, crashing into a tree and leaving a truly impressive crater. While he was flying, Ladron's hands and Doni were briefly connected by two thin, crackling arcs of lightning.

Observing the twitching form of his unconscious 'brother,' Ladron suddenly became aware of the fact that people were panicking. A sword wielding man crashing into a tree while being propelled by lightning wasn't exactly a common occurance. Knowing that the police and Bronze Black Cross would soon arrive, Ladron rapidly wove an illusion around himself, changing his appearance to that of a nondescript dock worker. Moving quickly but calmly, Ladron left the scene just as sirens could be faintly heard in the distance.

Taking refuge in a quiet back alley, Ladron let his illusion fade. He felt sick inside. Even though Doni would survive more or less unharmed, he had still managed to impulsively ruin the day for what seemed like half of Milan. His only comfort lay in knowing that actually dueling Doni would have been far worse for everyone involved. Curling up into a tiny ball, Ladron spent the rest of the day and night trying to forget himself in sleep.

**Author's Note**:

Alright, I know that this was probably a little slow in coming out, but I've been in midterm study mode for awhile. Hopefully once this week of pointless testing is over, I'll be able to put stuff out a little faster. On the other hand, my mind is burning out in terms of the main storyline (it happens every now and again, it never lasts for too long), so the next chapter or two will probably be flashbacks of Ladron's past experiences with Lilliana, or maybe a chapter purely from Lilliana's perspective on how she's dealing with the situation. However it works out, here's hoping that you all enjoy :)


	9. Devil Kings are Idiots

**Chapter 9 Devil Kings are Idiots**

Two days had passed since Ladron had fled the Bronze Black Cross. Though agents had combed the city, and even thought that they had gotten a lucky break when they found Doni's battered body, Ladron knew the city far too well to be found. Lilliana was sitting at the small table in her room, sipping from endless cups of hot tea. She felt guilty, as if Ladron's flight was somehow her fault. She mulled over the situation, feeling worse every time she reexamined it. She had done exactly as she would have done for any other campione. Granted, Karen's idea of a maid outfit was rather stupid in hindsight, but who really knew the inner workings of a campione's mind?

Lilliana sighed and poured herself yet another cup of tea. Blowing on the hot liquid, she brought it to her lips and sipped. She continued to sit and mope for several more minutes. Eventually she went to refill her cup of tea again, but the kettle was empty. Pointlessly frustrated over this minor inconvenience, Lilliana swept her arm across the table, knocking the empty cup, kettle, and saucer to the floor. As the sound of shattering porcelain tinkled in her ears, Lilliana rested her head on the table and closed her eyes. Karen came in and quietly began to clean up the mess. She looked with concern at Lilliana, who had barely moved from her room since Ladron ran. Sweeping the last of the broken porcelain into a garbage bag, she sat down next to Lilliana.

"A penny for your thoughts?" she asked. Lilliana merely grunted in response. Karen sighed, this was obviously going to need stronger measures. "I'm sorry about the maid outfit" she began again. "It was a bad idea. Though you _did_ look rather attractive in it. I'd say that if he wasn't so surprised he'd have asked you out on the spot." Karen spoke in her most provocative devil's tone. Lilliana merely shrugged. Karen drew in a breath and let it out explosively, this was not going as well as she had hoped.

"Alright then..." she said, sitting up straight. "No more sugarcoating or friendly advice." She grabbed Lilliana's shoulder and forcing her to look up. "Listen up!" she barked. "I have one job, and that's taking care of your life so thhat you can function at hundred percent at all times. Right now, you're so distracted and depressed, that I'm clearly not doing my job correctly! So either fix the damn problem yourself, or tell me so that I can fix it for you!" The two stared at each other for a few seconds. Finally, Lilliana spoke.

"It's not the kind of problem that either of us can fix." she said, her voice low and discouraged. Karen rolled her eyes, exhasperated. She had had enough of Lilliana's gloom. Drawing back her hand, she slapped Lilliana across the face.

"Ok, time for a reality check!" Karen spat. "Your doom and gloom attitude is helpling no one, least of all yourself. So snap out of it!" She went to slap Lilliana again, but this time her hand was blocked by Lilliana's wrist.

"What do you know!" Lilliana yelled, pushing Karen away from her and standing up. "You've never had to deal directly with campione directly. They're monsters to the core! They'll either outright abuse you, or take you in with the semblance of friendship and then reveal that they never placed any value on your life at all, or they'll ruin and take the lives of your friends, or...or..." Lilliana was almost screaming now. "You know nothing! NOTHING!" Finally out of steam, she stood and glared at Karen, who stood her ground.

"So you're afraid that the instant Ladron became a campione, everything was destined to change between you two?" she asked, her tone growwing scathing. "What pathetic school of reasoning do you subscribe to?" Lilliana's face grew red with anger, her words becoming incoherent gibberish.

"Sure, Voban and Doni hurt you." Karen continued, her tone a little softer. "But never Ladron. I saw his face when he left. He was angry with himseelf for thinking that he had hurt you. All he wanted was to restore your friendship! You heard him yourself, how he wasn't comfortable at all with the idea of being a campione. If you truly don't want him to become a monster, you'll go find him and make sure that he never loses his moral compass!" Lilliana had been slowly calming down while Karen spoke, and finally managed to relax. She walked over and briefly hugged her maid.

"Thank you, Karen" she said, letting go after a few seconds and looking around for her boots. "I needed that." Karen nodded, bowing formally.

"I live to serve, Mistress." she said, smiling as Lilliana left the room. "Now, where were we?" Karen asked playfully, pulling out her notebook and grabbing one of Lilliana's journals out of its hiding place, and began to copy its contents.

Lilliana spent an hour or so dashing through the streets and back alleys of Milan, looking for Ladron. She hadn't fully worked out what she would say when she found him, but that would come in time. As she dashed around a blind corner, she ran full on into another youth about her own age.

"Hey, watch it!" he said, getting up and shaking his blond hair out of his eyes. "Wait, I know you!" he said, his voice growing cheery. "Lilith Krakaur, right?" Lilliana grunted and also got to her feet. The last person she wanted to run into was Lord Salvatore Doni.

"I'm sorry, my lord" she said hurriedly. "But I'm currently on an errand for my master, Ladron, so..." she moved to get away, but Doni grabbed her arm.

"Wait. Did you just say 'Ladron'?" Doni asked, his voice growing serious. Lilliana nodded, shaking her arm free. "What a coincidence!" he exclaimed, smiling in relief. "I've been looking for him for two days, and I just can't find him. I assume you'd be happy to help me?" Lilliana dutifully nodded with a blank expression, but now she was worried. Whenever Doni took a personal interest in someone, especially when that someone was also a campione, things tended to escalate out of control.

The two spent another two hours combing the city, but they couldn't find any trace Ladron. While Lilliana remained undeterred since she well knew Ladron's abilities, Doni slowly began to lose his cheery demeanor. Finally, in the middle of a public square, he lost his cool.

"Why won't he just show himself and finish our duel?!" He exploded, his voice indignant. Lilliana stopped and looked back in concern. When Doni acted like this, it inevitably meant that he was about to do something incredibly stupid. Growling incoherently, Doni closed the distance between himself and Lilliana. Grabbing her by the shoulder, he drew her in close.

"You said that he was your master, right?" he growled. Lilliana nodded, wondering what was coming next. Her wonder rapidly changed to alarm when Doni threw her over his shoulder and drew his sword. Smashing a nearby bench into splinters of woods and shards of metal, Doni made his announcement.

"Hear me, Ladron!" he roared. "I have your personal knight in my possession, if you do not come to face me within two hours, she will die by my blade!" The citizens that were within earshot were initially confused, but as Doni swung his sword menacingly and continued calling for Ladron, they began to worry. Most began to evacuate the area, several pulled out cell phones to call for the police.

Lilliana knew that she couldn't escape, even if she broke Doni's hold on her, she wouldn't have enough time to use flight magic to get beyond his reach. Instead, she watched as police and news vehicles began to arrive. As uniformed officers took up positions around the square, Doni shifted Lilliana from his shoulder back to the ground. Wrapping an arm around her chest, he held his blade to her neck.

"Stay back, unless you want her blood to spill!" he called out, and the police froze. Finally, one officer walked forward, laying his weapons on the ground and spreading his arms wide.

"Who do you want?" he asked, stopping far away from Doni.

"His name is Ladron..." Doni began, and proceeded to give a full description of him. Lilliana waited while the two hours Doni had given Ladron slipped away. News helicopters circled overhead. The police hid behind their cars, not wanting to provoke Doni. Even though her life was endangered, the author in Lilliana couldn't help reflecting that this scenario seemed almost like came out of an action movie. A mentally unstable villain holds the female lead hostage, with no hope of escape. Law enforcement refuses to move in for fear of endangering her life. As time ticks by and the hero doesn't emerge, tension builds. And at the last possible second, when it seems like the villain must prevail...

"Doni, what in Hel's accursed name do you want?" a furious voice called out. Doni and Lilliana looked around, but the speaker wasn't immediately apparent.

"Over here, you idiot..." the voice spoke again, and Doni whirled around, dragging Lilliana with him. Kneeling in the branches of a tree was a figure clad in worn jeans and a dirty sweatshirt. His long black hair was unkempt, flowing over his shoulders and back in no particular pattern. His face was utterly calm, but his blue eyes were blazing with suppressed rage. Smiling, Doni raised his sword in a salute.

"Hail, my brother!" he called, his usual cheer returning in an instant. "It is time for me to answer your brilliant first strike in our sacred duel!" The police were puzzled by this exchange, and began milling in confusion. The news helicopters began getting closer for a better camera angle. While she was relieved that Doni's attention was no longer focussed on her, Lilliana instantly began worrying about the rest of the situation. Was Ladron ready for a real duel with Doni? Where was the Bronze Black Cross to help handle the flow of information and protect the citizens?

"Doni, you're a greater fool than I was lead to believe..." Ladron declared, leaping down from the tree aand striding forward. "If you wanted to fight me, you didn't have to drag all of these people into it!" Doni laughed, casting Lilliana aside.

"But I got so impatient with just hunting for you, so I decided to draw you out!" he explained, as though it were the most natural decision in the world.

Lilliana rolled and got back to her feet instinctively summoning Il Maestro. However, she instantly felt the difference in power between herself and the two campione that stood in front of her. They were almost literally radiating killing intent, their eyes looked almost demonic, one pair filled with battlelust, the other with extreme anger. Trying to help Ladron against Doni would be like a young child trying to influence the outcome of a duel between trained knights.

Helplessly, Lilliana watched as Doni initiated the duel. Advancing at a ridiculous pace, he swept his sword up and around, trying to take off Ladron's head. Ladron easily backstepped and slipped to the side, but Doni recover his guard before he could counterattack. Doni continued his assault with reckless abandon, forcing Ladron to continue dodging and weaving. Finally, Ladron's reflexes proved too slow, and Doni's blade pierced his shoulder.

Lilliana gasped as she watched as the blade emerge from Ladron's back. Smiling even as his blood stained his clothes, Ladron grasped the blade between his palms. Electricity arced up the blade and into Doni's outstretched arm. Yowling, Doni hurriedly backed off. Ladron licked one of his palms, cleaning off the blood from a small cut that he got when Doni retreated. Snapping the fingers of his other hand, he sent a bolt of lightning through the air, which Doni narrowly avoided by diving and rolling. Raising his sword above his head, Doni grinned.

"O silver arm, upon my oath, turn into the invincible blade!" he cried, channeling his power into his sword. Doni's right arm became metallic in appearance, and his blade gave off a dangerous aura.

"Try catching my blade now, brother!" Doni taunted, making another mad dash forward. Ladron let the lightning fade from his palms and relaxed, his eyes evaluating Doni's every step. Lilliana wanted to scream at him, tell him to move, to escape from the sword that could slice through everything in existence. She watched as the distance between the two campione closed. Just as Ladron and Doni were face to face, the sword almost touching Ladron's chest, he twisted, letting the blade slide past him. Planting his feet firmly, he grasped Doni's arm and shoulder. Continuing to pivot, he used Doni's own momentum to hurl him across the park. Without pause, Ladron brought both hands up and slashed them out to the side, creating twin crescent arcs of lightning that crashed into Doni's body.

Dirt and debris filled the air after the lightning had exploded, briefly shielding Doni from view. Ladron stood as he studied the slowly settling dust cloud, searching for his opponent. Lilliana's breathing slowly returned to normal as she saw the outcome, and she almost felt like cheering. Then, the cloud settled. Doni was standing, completely unharmed. Runes flowed across his skin, evidently providing some sort of protective barrier. He smiled even as Ladron frowned in annoyance.

"Well played, brother, well played!" Doni complimented, slowly striding forward. "But not even you can pierce my invincible shield!" After a few seconds, Ladron's expression lightened, and a grim smile played about his lips.

"I assume you killed Seigfried for that authority?" he asked. Doni nodded, obviously pleased that his opponent was knowledgable about his authorities.

"Well, that is a powerful shield" Ladron admitted. "So I guess it's time to go big or go home..." This time it was Ladron who sprinted forward at inhuman speed, Ladron who lashed out. Doni merely raised his blade and made a swift diagonal slash. Lilliana watched in horror as blood stained the ground, and Ladron fell in two halves. She could feel a scream rising from within her, but before she could release it, Doni's face contorted and he grunted in pain. Even as the sliced halves of Ladron dissipated as white light, a kneeling figure shimmered into existence behind Doni. The figue was facing away from Doni, holding a sword backwards, the blade was half buried in Doni's spine. As the shimmering died down, the figure was revealed to be Ladron, who was breathing hard and clasping his free hand over a deep and nasty gash running from his knee to his hip.

"Well...played..." Doni grunted, a touch of blood dribbling from his mouth as his legs buckled. "I thought...I was...invincible..." Ladron smiled.

"Knowledge is half the battle" Ladron quoted, grunting as he ripped his sword free and placed both hands over his wound. "Siegfried appears in many norse myths, the Volsunga Saga and the Nibelungenlied among them. While both attest to Siegfried's invulnerability gained from the blood of the dragon Fafnir, the Nibelungenlied reveals his weakness as a small patch of skin on his back, where a leaf blocked out the blood while he bathed in it..." Ladron grimaced. "I guess this wound was worth it, since you can't exactly fight without your legs..."

"Agreed..." Doni groaned, letting his silver arm and protective runes fade. "We should do this again sometime..."

"Next time, just ask" Ladron told him. "You don't need to involve half the damn city, we can just find a nice quiet place and kill each other to our heart's content..." Even though Ladron was being slightly sarcastic, the two boys looked at each other and grinned. Then Ladron punched Doni nose hard enough to break it.

"Whad wazz dat phor?" Doni exclaimed, holding his nose and grunting.

"Taking Lily hostage..." Ladron muttered, finally getting woozy from blood loss. He fell over and laid on the grass. "Hello ground..." he said. As he let the blood of the giants carry him into a healing coma, the last thing he saw was Lilliana sprinting over and falling to her knees next to him, shouting something he couldn't have heard if he tried.

_Beep...Beep...Beep...Beep...Beep..._ the rhythmic, high pitched tone of the heart moniter sounded in Ladron's ear. Suppressing a sudden desire to smash the annoying machine, Ladron forced his eyes open. The soft golden red light of a sunrise or sunset flowed in through a curtained window, giving the white room a pleasant appearance. Looking around, Ladron saw that he was alone in the room this time. Sighing, Ladron ripped off the sticky pads and hurled a pillow over the heart moniter. As before, two medics practically broke down the door in their haste to ensure his survival. Unlike before, they took his revival far morre calmly.

"It is good to see you awake, my lord." One of the medics said as they both bowed.

"Yeah, you can dispense with the titles, I don't really care for them." Ladron said dismissively. "How long was I out this time?"

"A few days, my lor...uh...Ladron." the other medic answered, correcting himself halfway through.

"That's just grand. So, where's Lilliana?" Ladron asked, intending to apologize for his horrible manners from several days ago.

"I do not know" the firrst medic responded. "But I can..."

"There's no need" Lilliana's tired voice came from the doorway. "I'm right here." As she stepped into the room, Ladron felt like cringing. Lilliana was grey around the eyes, with bags as if she hadn't slept in days. Her usual ponytail was a mess, with more hair running over he shoulders or into her face than was caught up it. Her clothes were wrinkled and a little sweat stained, though they weren't overly dirty or worn. Taken together, it looked as if she had had an exhausting few days.

"You sure that you're not supposed to be the patient?" Ladron joked, pushing himself upright and cracking his neck. Lilliana smiled a little, though she quickly grew serious again. Correctly reading the situation, the two medics quietly left the room and shut the door. Lilliana took a deep breath, but before she could speak, Ladron cut her off.

"I'm sorry I hurt you. I shouldn't have intimidated you, nor walked out like that afterwards. I just felt like a mess you happened to get caught up in it. I said that I didn't want to be another Doni or Voban, yet I still ended up acting like them. You have every right to be angry, I know that..." his tone was becoming steadily more depressed. Lilliana shook her head and spoke up.

"Part of the blame lies with me." she began. "I've seen some horrible things done by campione, I've even been forced to participate in some of them. When you became one, I didn't want to believe it. I that you'd end up like the others, so I hid from life and submerged myself in self-pity." She walked over and sat down next to Ladron on the hospital bed.

"And you're _not_ acting like Doni or Voban" she asserted, her voice softening. "You may have been a little impulsive, but you're not like them. You care about people, you're not egotistical or cruel, you don't deliberately seek personal power or acclaim. And if you do start going down that path, you have me to correct you." she finished with a small joke.

"That is a comfort." Ladron said, smiling. "Well, we recently fought with Voban, Heretic Thor, and Doni. I'd say we deserve some downtime."

"Agreed." Lilliana said, fingering the two tickets in her pocket. Perhaps Karen's advice would prove useful a second time...

**Author's Note:**

Alright, I know that this chapter was on the shorter side, but I think we can all agree with Ladron's statement. They do deserve some downtime. (I detest midterms, they take too much energy...) Have a great week guys :)


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